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Atomic-scale Modeling of Transition-metal Doping of Semiconductor NanocrystalsSingh, Tejinder 01 February 2011 (has links)
Doping in bulk semiconductors (e.g., n- or p- type doping in silicon) allows for precise control of their properties and forms the basis for the development of electronic and photovoltaic devices. Recently, there have been reports on the successful synthesis of doped semiconductor nanocrystals (or quantum dots) for potential applications in solar cells and spintronics. For example, nanocrystals of ZnSe (with zinc-blende lattice structure) and CdSe and ZnO (with wurtzite lattice structure) have been doped successfully with transition-metal (TM) elements (Mn, Co, or Ni). Despite the recent progress, however, the underlying mechanisms of doping in colloidal nanocrystals are not well understood. This thesis reports a comprehensive theoretical analysis toward a fundamental kinetic and thermodynamic understanding of doping in ZnO, CdSe, and ZnSe quantum dots based on first-principles density-functional theory (DFT) calculations. The theoretical predictions of this thesis are consistent with experimental measurements and provide fundamental interpretations for the experimental observations. The mechanisms of doping of colloidal ZnO nanocrystals with the TM elements Mn, Co, and Ni is investigated. The dopant atoms are found to have high binding energies for adsorption onto the Zn-vacancy site of the (0001) basal surface and the O-vacancy site of the (0001) basal surface of ZnO nanocrystals; therefore, these surface vacancies provide viable sites for substitutional doping, which is consistent with experimental measurements. However, the doping efficiencies are affected by the strong tendencies of the TM dopants to segregate at the nanocrystal surface facets, as indicated by the corresponding computed dopant surface segregation energy profiles. Furthermore, using the Mn doping of CdSe as a case study, the effect of nanocrystal size on doping efficiency is explored. It is shown that Mn adsorption onto small clusters of CdSe is characterized by high binding energies, which, in conjunction with the Mn surface segregation characteristics on CdSe nanocrystals, explains experimental reports of high doping efficiency for small-size CdSe clusters. In addition, this thesis presents a systematic analysis of TM doping in ZnSe nanocrystals. The analysis focuses on the adsorption and surface segregation of Mn dopants on ZnSe nanocrystal surface facets, as well as dopant-induced nanocrystal morphological transitions, and leads to a fundamental understanding of the underlying mechanisms of dopant incorporation into growing nanocrystals. Both surface kinetics (dopant adsorption onto the nanocrystal surface facets) and thermodynamics (dopant surface segregation) are found to have a significant effect on the doping efficiencies in ZnSe nanocrystals. The analysis also elucidates the important role in determining the doping efficiency of ZnSe nanocrystals played by the chemical potentials of the growth precursor species, which determine the surface structure and morphology of the nanocrystals.
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Structure and Transport in Nanocrystalline Cadmium Selenide Thin FilmsNorman, Zachariah Mitchell January 2015 (has links)
This thesis explores colloidal semiconductor nanocrystal solutions as a feedstock for creating thin film semiconductor materials through printing processes. This thesis will span the synthesis of nanocrystals, ligand exchange chemistry, solution phase characterization methods, thin film device fabrication, thin film characterization methods, and device characteristics. We will focus extensively relating the structure of nanocrystals in solution and in thin films to their chemistry, optical properties and electronic properties.
By way of introduction, the origin and nature of semiconductor nanocrystals will be explored. This discussion will place semiconductor nanocrystals in their historical context, namely the oil-shocks of the 1970s. The interest in II-VI semiconductor materials stemmed from a desire find photochemical synthetic routes to reduce the use of fossil fuels. As a result, II-VI semiconductor nanocrystal are far more developed synthetically. Additionally, our understanding of II-VI semiconductor nanocrystals is couched in the language of solid state physics rather than chemistry. This will lead into a discussion of their electronic structure and the iterative nature of nanocrystal synthetic development and our theoretical understanding of nanocrystals.
The first chapter will discuss nanocrystal synthetic methods in a broad context, finally narrowing in on the synthesis chosen for this work. Following a description of the synthesis, we will then describe the ligand chemistry and the reactions which may be performed in the ligand shell. The final sections of the chapter will describe the synthetic routes to the three nanocrystal materials used in the rest of this work, namely CdSe-CdCl2/PBu3, CdSe-CdCl2/NH2Bu, and CdSe/NH2Bu.
The second chapter will introduce the crystal structure of II-VI semiconductor nanocrystals and describe how the structure is measured. This will lead in to a discussion of pair distribution function analysis of X-ray data and examples of its application to the solution phase structure of semiconductor nanocrystals. Some size dependent structural properties, namely stain, will be demonstrated by PDF. At the end evidence for surface reconstruction in solution as ligands are removed will be presented.
In the final chapter, techniques for film formation and ligand dissolution with be presented. Annealing of films produces electronic and structural changes which can be observed in the absorbance spectrum, electron microscopy, and X-ray scattering. I propose a three phase annealing model which includes 1) reversible desorption of the organic ligands, 2) irreversible particle fusion, and 3 ripening of grains. The temperature at which ripening occurs depends sensitively on the sample content, which increase chloride concentration decreasing the temperature at which ripening occurs. The ripening process is found to correlate with a phase transition from zinc blende to wurtzite, which indicates that grain boundary mobility is an important part of the ripening process.
Finally thin film transistors are characterized electronically. Fused grains show superior electron mobility as high as 25 cm2/(Vs) and on/off ratios of 10\up5 and less than 0.5 V hysteresis in threshold voltage without the addition of indium. Surprisingly, the ripened grains show poorer transport characteristics. The manuscript concludes by noting the importance of the sintering process in achieving conductivity in thin films and discussing future directions to build upon this work.
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Electronic Structure Characterization of Nanocrystalline Surfaces and Interfaces with Photoemission SpectroscopyGutmann, Sebastian 01 January 2011 (has links)
In this study, photoemission spectroscopy (PES) was used to investigate the electronic properties of nanocrystalline titanium dioxide (TiO2), zinc oxide (ZnO), and cadmium selenide (CdSe). Electrospray deposition technique enabled the preparation of thin films in vacuum from a dispersion prepared outside the vacuum chamber. This method also allowed the step-wise formation of interfaces and the monitoring of the evolution of the electronic structure with intermittent PES characterization. The work function of nanocrystalline TiO2 and ZnO was measured with ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (UPS) and low-intensity x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (LIXPS). Measurements on environmentally contaminated surfaces revealed an instantaneous and permanent work function decrease of 0.3-0.5 eV upon exposure to ultraviolet radiation during a UPS measurement. The work function reduction is likely to be related to the formation of a surface dipole caused by the photo-chemical hydroxylation of surface defects. This phenomenon was further investigated with regard to its influence on the electronic structure of the indium tin oxide (ITO)/TiO2 interface found in dye-sensitized solar cells. The experiments suggest that UV radiation can cause a small but significant change of the charge injection barriers at the interface. The determined band line-ups revealed electron injection barriers of ~0.3-0.5 eV, while UV radiation caused an increase of about 0.15 eV. This might have the potential to further impede electron transfer to the ITO electrode and affect the performance of solar cell device. Another type of photovoltaic cell using nanocrystalline material is a heterojunction bulk solar cell. Conversion efficiencies of such devices are currently only about 3% due to the inefficient charge separation at interfaces formed by blending organic and inorganic material. An approach to improve efficiencies in such devices is the use of covalently bonded conductive polymer/inorganic hybrid nanocrystals. In this study a prototypical model system was investigated with PES with the aim to develop a measurement protocol that allows the determination of electronic properties for such hybrid materials. The comparison of the relative core-level binding energies of the organics-functionalized CdSe nanocrystal compared to the ligand-free CdSe nanocrystal and the arylselenophosphate ligand material enabled the determination of the electronic structure at the interface. Core-level measurements support the hypothesis that the Se functionality of the organic ligand coordinates to the Cd sites on the nanopthesis surface.
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Synthesis and optical properties of CdSe core and core/shell nanocrystalsvan Embden, Joel Leonard January 2008 (has links)
The synthesis of nanocrystals is unique compared to the formation of larger micron-sizesspecies as the final crystal sizes are not much larger than the primary nuclei. As a consequencethe final outcome of a nanocrystal synthesis i.e mean crystal size, concentrationand standard deviation is almost solely determined by the end of the nucleation phase. Directingthe growth of crystals beginning from aggregates of only tens of atoms into maturemonodisperse nanocrystals requires that the governing kinetics are strictly controlled at everymoment of the reaction. To effect this task various different ligands need to be employed,each performing a particular function during both nucleation and growth. (For complete abstract open document)
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Photoluminescence Intermittency of Semiconductor Quantum Dots in Dielectric EnvironmentsIssac, Abey 14 August 2006 (has links) (PDF)
The experimental studies presented in this thesis deal with the photoluminescence
intermittency of semiconductor quantum dots in different dielectric environments. Detailed
analysis of intermittency statistics from single capped CdSe/ZnS, uncapped CdSe and
water dispersed CdSe/ZnS QDs in different matrices provide experimental evidence for the
model of photoionization with a charge ejected into the surrounding matrix as the source of
PL intermittency phenomenon. The distribution of the dark state lifetimes can be described
by a power law over a wide range while that of bright state can be described by a power
law at shorter times followed by an exponential decay.
The lifetimes of the bright and dark states are influenced by the dielectric properties
of the surrounding environment. Our experimental results show that the lifetime of the dark
state increases with the dielectric constant of the matrix. This is very clear from the linear
correlation between αoff and f (ε). We propose a self-trapping model to explain the increase
of dark state lifetimes with the dielectric constant of the matrix. A charge will be more
stabilized in a medium with high dielectric constant. An energetically more favourable
state for an electron in a high dielectric medium decreases the return probability which
eventually increases the duration of the off-time. Moreover, the self-trapping model
establishes a general model for distribution of states in a matrix.
We like to mention, that in the case of bright states, a qualitative observation is the
cross over of the on-time power law behavior to an exponential one. The power law part of
the decay is nearly matrix independent while the exponential decay, which limits the
maximum on-time, strongly depends on dielectric properties of the environment. The
exponential part of the on-time probability decays much faster in a high dielectric medium
and there exists a linear relation between the time constant of the exponential decay
and f (ε). Theoretical background has been provided for the observed results using the
recently published DCET model which correlates PL intermittency of QDs with properties of the environment.
This supports our previous conjecture of a general model for matrix controlled blinking process.
The disagreement between experimentally observed dependence of αoff and f (ε) for
different matrices with that of the static tunnelling model proposed by Verberk is due to the fact that the tunneling model considers only an electron transfer between
a QD and spatially distributed trap states in vacuum. These states are already stabilized
states. It does not assume any medium in between. Therefore, matrix dependent blinking
kinetics can not be explained quantitatively by tunneling model even though tunneling
between a QD and spatially distributed trap states gives a power law distribution for the
blinking kinetics.
DCET is a more general (dynamic) model. The bright and dark state parabolas
contain QD, charge and the matrix. Therefore, this model could in principle explain matrix
dependent blinking kinetics in a better way, for example, the energy difference between the
minima of the bright and dark state parabolas (-ΔG0) is defined by the stabilization energy
of the system provided by the matrix. However, due to lack of the relevant intrinsic
parameters we did not compare this relationship and dependence qualitatively. / Betrachtet man die Fluoreszenz einzelner Farbstoffmoleküle oder Halbleiternanokristalle bei
kontinuierlicher Anregung, so stellt man fest, dass die im Zeitverlauf beobachtete Intensität einer
stochastischen Variation unterliegt, d. h. dass das Chromophor zwischen emittierenden und nicht
emittierenden Zuständen, auch Hell- und Dunkelzuständen genannt, hin- und herschaltet. Dieses als
Blinken bekannte Phänomen ist physikalisch wie auch technologisch herausfordernd, lässt es doch
einerseits die Realisierbarkeit einer Reihe von quantenoptischen Anwendungen, so z. B. auf dem
Gebiet der Quantenkryptographie, dem Quantum Computing oder der optischen Schaltungstechnik
auf Basis einzelner Quantenobjekte, in naher Zukunft möglich erscheinen. Andererseits setzt es
gewissen Anwendungen, die auf die permanente Sichtbarkeit des Chromophors aufbauen, Grenzen,
so zum Beispiel der Verwendung als Lumineszenzmarker in der medizinischen Diagnostik.
Weiterhin ist festzustellen, dass das Blinken kritisch von den äußeren Bedingungen und von den
Umgebungsparametern abhängt. Aus diesen und anderen Gründen ist ein fundamentales
Verständnis der physikalischen Ursachen und der Wechselwirkungsprozesse unerlässlich. Die
Forschung dazu steckt noch in den Kinderschuhen.
Basierend auf umfangreiche Messungen der Fluoreszenzzeitreihen einzelner Nanokristalle aus
CdSe und CdSe/ZnS in verschiedenen Umgebungen, zeigt diese Dissertation exemplarisch den
Einfluss der Dielektrizitätsparameter auf das Blinken. Zur Erklärung des Sachverhalts wird ein so
genanntes Self-Trapping-Modell zu Rate gezogen. Demnach kommt es zu einer Ionisation des
Quantenobjekts und anschließender Ladungstrennung, woraufhin die abgetrennte Ladung für eine
gewisse Zeit in der Umgebung lokalisiert bleibt. Die Dauer der Lokalisierung und damit der
emittierenden und nicht emittierenden Perioden hängt von der dielektrischen Funktion des
umgebenden Materials ab. Dies ist als direkter Nachweis für den photoinduzierten Ladungstransfer
als Ursache des Fluoreszenzblinkens zu deuten. Die Arbeit demonstriert, dass die experimentellen
Zeitreihen die charakteristischen Merkmale eines diffusionsgesteuerten Ladungstransferprozesses
besitzen und nimmt dabei den gegenwärtigen wissenschaftlichen Diskurs über geeignete
theoretische Modelle des Fluoreszenzblinkens auf.
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Preparation and Optical Properties of Hybrid Assemblies of Metallic Gold Nanoparticles and Semi-Conducting CdSe Quantum DotsTripathi, Laxmi Narayan January 2013 (has links) (PDF)
This thesis summarizes the methods of preparation and optical properties of hybrid assemblies of Au NPs and cadmium selenide (CdSe) QDs. First chap-ter deals with the literature survey and theoretical aspects of plasmonics and discussions on optical excitations of metal (plasmons) and semiconducting QDs (excitons). Variation of energy levels of CdSe QDs and its optical properties i
e. absorption and emission properties under strong confinement regime have been discussed with respect to effective mass approximation (EMA) model. This is followed by the discussion on optical properties of Au NPs and rods, describing absorption properties, based on Mie theory. Size and shape depen-dent variation of absorption properties. Theoretical discussions of collective effects in QDs assemblies and plasmonic interactions with the QDs assemblies i.e. plasmonic Dicke effect and metal nanoantenna interaction with CdSe QDs arrays is provided.
In the second chapter a discussion on experimental techniques used for the study is provided. It starts with a discussion on the synthesis methods for CdSe QDs and Au NPs/rods with different capping ligands. Different techniques of preparation of CdSe QDs assemblies and their hybrid with metallic nanoparti-cles has been discussed. Further discussion on optical microscopy techniques, confocal, near field scanning microscopy (NSOM), Brewster angle microscopy and electron microscopy techniques i. e transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy and thermogravimetry analysis of the samples is provided.
In the third chapter the details of the different self-assembly methods of preparation of hybrid assemblies of CdSe QDs and Au NPs /rods are given. The different strategies are used for different type of hybrids. In first method of Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) , effect of different capping agents, core size, and number ratios of Au NPs/rods to CdSe QDs, effect of anisotropy of Au NPs on the LB films of CdSe QDs assemblies is discussed. In another method of dip coating several control parameters like dip time, concentration of the solution and dip speed of transferring an aligned GNRs is given. Finally a combination of LB and dip coating methods is described for transferring aligned GNRs over a compact layer of CdSe QDs. At the end, a section is devoted to hit and trials of self-assemblies of hybrid of GNRs and CdSe QDs using LB method, the failures of which resulted in devising a method which uses a combination of LB and dip coating.
In fourth chapter effects of plasmons on the collective emission of CdSe QDs assemblies are investigated. A plasmonic tuning of photoluminescence from semiconducting QD assemblies using Au NP in different ratio and different packing density has been discussed. We have described how the emission from a closed pack assemblies, prepared with different packing densities depends on the packing density and extent of spectral overlap between QD photolumi-nescence and the metal nanoparticle absorbance. We have provided possible evidence for plasmon mediated coherent emission enhancement from some of these assemblies from the case of strong spectral overlap between CdSe QDs and Au nanoparticle.
In fifth chapter, we have demonstrated non local far field enhancement of PL in QDs assemblies induced by isolated and partially aligned GNRs nano-antenna located on such assemblies. It is shown that the emission is also anisotropic with the maxima being near such GNRs assembly which decays to finite, nonzero and significantly large values even away from the vicinity of any such assemblies. For this novel effect it is shown to have a clear spec-tral dependence. It is shown to be maximum when the longitudinal surface plasmon resonance absorption maxima is resonant with the CdSe QD photolu-minescence maxima and the excitation wavelength and is always non-existent for the off resonant case. We have also shown that finite difference time do-main simulations could model some of the observed near field effects but the far field effects could not be modelled in such simulations.
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Photoluminescence Intermittency of Semiconductor Quantum Dots in Dielectric EnvironmentsIssac, Abey 11 August 2006 (has links)
The experimental studies presented in this thesis deal with the photoluminescence
intermittency of semiconductor quantum dots in different dielectric environments. Detailed
analysis of intermittency statistics from single capped CdSe/ZnS, uncapped CdSe and
water dispersed CdSe/ZnS QDs in different matrices provide experimental evidence for the
model of photoionization with a charge ejected into the surrounding matrix as the source of
PL intermittency phenomenon. The distribution of the dark state lifetimes can be described
by a power law over a wide range while that of bright state can be described by a power
law at shorter times followed by an exponential decay.
The lifetimes of the bright and dark states are influenced by the dielectric properties
of the surrounding environment. Our experimental results show that the lifetime of the dark
state increases with the dielectric constant of the matrix. This is very clear from the linear
correlation between αoff and f (ε). We propose a self-trapping model to explain the increase
of dark state lifetimes with the dielectric constant of the matrix. A charge will be more
stabilized in a medium with high dielectric constant. An energetically more favourable
state for an electron in a high dielectric medium decreases the return probability which
eventually increases the duration of the off-time. Moreover, the self-trapping model
establishes a general model for distribution of states in a matrix.
We like to mention, that in the case of bright states, a qualitative observation is the
cross over of the on-time power law behavior to an exponential one. The power law part of
the decay is nearly matrix independent while the exponential decay, which limits the
maximum on-time, strongly depends on dielectric properties of the environment. The
exponential part of the on-time probability decays much faster in a high dielectric medium
and there exists a linear relation between the time constant of the exponential decay
and f (ε). Theoretical background has been provided for the observed results using the
recently published DCET model which correlates PL intermittency of QDs with properties of the environment.
This supports our previous conjecture of a general model for matrix controlled blinking process.
The disagreement between experimentally observed dependence of αoff and f (ε) for
different matrices with that of the static tunnelling model proposed by Verberk is due to the fact that the tunneling model considers only an electron transfer between
a QD and spatially distributed trap states in vacuum. These states are already stabilized
states. It does not assume any medium in between. Therefore, matrix dependent blinking
kinetics can not be explained quantitatively by tunneling model even though tunneling
between a QD and spatially distributed trap states gives a power law distribution for the
blinking kinetics.
DCET is a more general (dynamic) model. The bright and dark state parabolas
contain QD, charge and the matrix. Therefore, this model could in principle explain matrix
dependent blinking kinetics in a better way, for example, the energy difference between the
minima of the bright and dark state parabolas (-ΔG0) is defined by the stabilization energy
of the system provided by the matrix. However, due to lack of the relevant intrinsic
parameters we did not compare this relationship and dependence qualitatively. / Betrachtet man die Fluoreszenz einzelner Farbstoffmoleküle oder Halbleiternanokristalle bei
kontinuierlicher Anregung, so stellt man fest, dass die im Zeitverlauf beobachtete Intensität einer
stochastischen Variation unterliegt, d. h. dass das Chromophor zwischen emittierenden und nicht
emittierenden Zuständen, auch Hell- und Dunkelzuständen genannt, hin- und herschaltet. Dieses als
Blinken bekannte Phänomen ist physikalisch wie auch technologisch herausfordernd, lässt es doch
einerseits die Realisierbarkeit einer Reihe von quantenoptischen Anwendungen, so z. B. auf dem
Gebiet der Quantenkryptographie, dem Quantum Computing oder der optischen Schaltungstechnik
auf Basis einzelner Quantenobjekte, in naher Zukunft möglich erscheinen. Andererseits setzt es
gewissen Anwendungen, die auf die permanente Sichtbarkeit des Chromophors aufbauen, Grenzen,
so zum Beispiel der Verwendung als Lumineszenzmarker in der medizinischen Diagnostik.
Weiterhin ist festzustellen, dass das Blinken kritisch von den äußeren Bedingungen und von den
Umgebungsparametern abhängt. Aus diesen und anderen Gründen ist ein fundamentales
Verständnis der physikalischen Ursachen und der Wechselwirkungsprozesse unerlässlich. Die
Forschung dazu steckt noch in den Kinderschuhen.
Basierend auf umfangreiche Messungen der Fluoreszenzzeitreihen einzelner Nanokristalle aus
CdSe und CdSe/ZnS in verschiedenen Umgebungen, zeigt diese Dissertation exemplarisch den
Einfluss der Dielektrizitätsparameter auf das Blinken. Zur Erklärung des Sachverhalts wird ein so
genanntes Self-Trapping-Modell zu Rate gezogen. Demnach kommt es zu einer Ionisation des
Quantenobjekts und anschließender Ladungstrennung, woraufhin die abgetrennte Ladung für eine
gewisse Zeit in der Umgebung lokalisiert bleibt. Die Dauer der Lokalisierung und damit der
emittierenden und nicht emittierenden Perioden hängt von der dielektrischen Funktion des
umgebenden Materials ab. Dies ist als direkter Nachweis für den photoinduzierten Ladungstransfer
als Ursache des Fluoreszenzblinkens zu deuten. Die Arbeit demonstriert, dass die experimentellen
Zeitreihen die charakteristischen Merkmale eines diffusionsgesteuerten Ladungstransferprozesses
besitzen und nimmt dabei den gegenwärtigen wissenschaftlichen Diskurs über geeignete
theoretische Modelle des Fluoreszenzblinkens auf.
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Halide-Assisted Synthesis of Cadmium Chalcogenide NanoplateletsMeerbach, Christian, Wu, Cong, Erwin, Steven C., Dang, Zhiya, Prudnikau, Anatol, Lesnyak, Vladimir 01 April 2021 (has links)
Atomically flat colloidal semiconductor CdSe nanoplatelets (NPLs) with precisely controlled thickness possess a range of unique optoelectronic properties. Here, we study the growth of CdSe, CdTe, and CdS NPLs with the aim of synthesizing thicker NPLs in order to extend their optical activity further into the lower energy/larger wavelength range. We employ cadmium halides, which lead to faster reaction kinetics as confirmed by control experiments with cadmium hydroxide as a Cd-precursor. Addition of halides in all cases led to the formation of thicker NPL species, as compared with the corresponding syntheses without these additives. Analysis of a recent theoretical model of the platelet growth mechanism confirms an earlier suggestion that reducing both the reaction enthalpy and the surface energy of CdSe, by replacing acetate ligands with chloride ions, should indeed lead to thicker NPLs as observed. We noticed a formation of Cd0-metal nanoparticles in the first stage of the synthesis by preparing the Cd-precursor, which is another key finding of our work. We assume that these particles can serve as an active cadmium source facilitating the growth of the NPLs. The resulting 6 ML CdSe NPLs exhibited bright photoluminescence with quantum yield of up to 50%, exceptionally narrow spectrum centered at 582 nm with full width at half-maximum of approx. 11 nm, and small Stokes shift of 2 nm. Moreover, we demonstrated the synthesis of heterostructured core/shell CdSe/CdS NPLs based on 6 ML CdSe platelets, which also exhibited bright fluorescence. This work shows the possibility to overcome energetic barrier limiting the size (thickness) control by using appropriate promoters of the growth of CdSe, CdTe, and CdS 2D structures.
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Nanostructured Extremely Thin Absorber (ETA) Hybrid Solar Cell Fabrication, Optimization, and CharacterizationLambert, Darcy Erin 01 January 2011 (has links)
Traditional sources of electrical energy are finite and can produce significant pollution. Solar cells produce clean energy from incident sunlight, and will be an important part of our energy future. A new nanostructured extremely thin absorber solar cell with 0.98% power conversion efficiency and maximum external quantum efficiency of 61% at 650 nm has been fabricated and characterized. This solar cell is composed of a fluorine-doped tin oxide base layer, n-type aluminum doped zinc oxide nanowires, a cadmium selenide absorber layer, poly(3-hexylthiophene) as a p-type layer, and thermally evaporated gold as a back contact. Zinc oxide nanowire electrodeposition has been investigated for different electrical environments, and the role of a zinc oxide thin film layer has been established. Cadmium selenide nanoparticles have been produced and optimized in-house and compared to commercially produced nanoparticles. Argon plasma cleaning has been investigated as a method to improve electronic behavior at cadmium selenide interfaces. The thermal anneal process for cadmium selenide nanoparticles has been studied, and a laser anneal process has been investigated. It has been found that the most efficient solar cells in this study are produced with a zinc oxide thin film, zinc oxide nanowires grown under constant -1V bias between the substrate material and the anode, cadmium selenide nanoparticles purchased commercially and annealed for 24 hours in the presence of cadmium chloride, and high molecular weight poly(3-hexylthiophene) spin-coated in a nitrogen environment.
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Organometallic Synthesis Kinetics of CdSe Quantum DotsDickerson, Bryan Douglas 27 April 2005 (has links)
CdSe quantum dots produced by organometallic synthesis are useful as tunable emitters for photonic devices and as multi-colored protein markers for biomedical imaging, applications requiring bright and narrow emission. A diffusion-limited model helped monitor growth rates via photoluminescence and absorbance spectroscopy, in order to characterize synthesis kinetics in stearic acid, dodecylamine, and in trioctylphosphine oxide. The nucleation rate increased with Se concentration, while the growth rate followed the Cd concentration.
Emission peak widths, emission redshift rates, nanocrystal growth rates, and reactant concentrations all decreased to a minimum when emission reached the critical wavelength, at a reaction completion time, tc. The temperature dependence of 1/tc and of redshift rates followed Arrhenius behavior governed by activation energies, which were tailored by the choice of solvent. Synthesis in solvents, such as stearic acid, with lower activation energies produced faster initial nanocrystal growth and longer critical wavelengths. The highest photoluminescence quantum yield was generally at wavelengths shorter than the critical wavelength, when moderate growth rates enabled surface reconstruction while precursors were still available. / Ph. D.
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