Surfactant ligand removal and rational fabrication of inorganically connected quantum dots

Nano Lett. 2011 Dec 14;11(12):5356-61. doi: 10.1021/nl202892p. Epub 2011 Oct 27.

Abstract

A novel method is reported to create inorganically connected nanocrystal (NC) assemblies for both II-VI and IV-VI semiconductors by removing surfactant ligands using (NH4)2S. This surface modification process differs from ligand exchange methods in that no new surfactant ligands are introduced and the post-treated NC surfaces are nearly bare. The detailed mechanism study shows that the high reactivity between (NH4)2S and metal-surfactant ligand complexes enables the complete removal of surfactant ligands in seconds and converts the NC metal-rich shells into metal sulfides. The post-treated NCs are connected through metal-sulfide bonding and form a larger NCs film assembly, while still maintaining quantum confinement. Such "connected but confined" NC assemblies are promising new materials for electronic and optoelectronic devices.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.