Themed collection Quantum Dots: Celebrating the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are fast-improving materials for next-generation solution-processed optoelectronic devices such as solar cells, photocatalysis, light emitting diodes, and photodetectors.

The limited stability of lead halide perovskite quantum dots impedes their broad applications and has received tremendous attention. The instability driven by structure, interface, etc. is summarized. Simultaneously, strategies such as compositional engineering and surface engineering towards enabling stable perovskite emitters are reviewed.

This review covers the progress in the research and development of carbon quantum dots and their applications in chemical sensing, biosensing, bioimaging, nanomedicine, photocatalysis and electrocatalysis.

Nanocrystals not only are good imaging agents but they can also be sensors of their biological and chemical environment.

This review outlines the major design principles and criteria governing the engineering of quantum dot-based diagnostic tools and nanotherapeutic agents.

In this paper, we report the use of phosphinecarboxamide as a convenient, air and moisture tolerant group-V precursor for the simple synthesis of InP-based quantum dots.

Superlattice deformation in PbS quantum dot thin films introduced by uniaxial strain: In situ GISAXS study on the correlation of morphology and photoluminescence.

Lead-free Bi-based perovskite FA₃Bi₂X₉ (X = Cl, Br, and I) quantum dots (QDs) are synthesized for the first time at room temperature. The ligand-passivated FA₃Bi₂Br₉ QDs exhibit blue emission at 437 nm with photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) up to 52%.

An all-solution processed inverted green quantum dot-based light-emitting diode with concurrent high efficiency and long lifetime is obtained by precisely controlled double shell growth of quantum dots.

For the first time, this work presents a novel room temperature time-effective concept to manipulate the crystallization kinetics and magnetic responses of thin films grown on amorphous substrates.

Electrospun PMMA fiber membrane encapsulated with CsPbBr₃ exhibits excellent FRET detection performance on trypsin, Cu²⁺ and pH.

Colloidally synthesized quantum dots of CsPbBr₃ are orthorhombic in crystal structure not cubic.

Monolayer MoS₂ QDs were prepared via a facile hydrothermal process and exhibited excellent catalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction.

A silicon nanocrystal paper based sensor has been developed for the rapid, on-site detection of nitro-group containing explosive compounds.

Fe₂O₃/CQDs with high photocatalytic activity under visible light was synthesized by a hydrothermal method.

Highly efficient perovskite quantum-dot-sensitized solar cell.

Strongly green fluorescent graphene quantum dots (GQDs) have been prepared, and they are successfully applied to image living cells.

We demonstrate that the upconverted PL properties of GQDs are similar to the ASPL, and the δE between the π and σ orbitals is near 1.1 eV.

Current density–voltage curves of CdS/CdSe quantum dot-sensitized solar cells featuring Pt, NiS, CuS and CoS counter electrodes. Under AM 1.5 irradiation, the CdS/CdSe QDSSC featuring a CoS electrode and a polysulfide electrolyte provided an energy conversion efficiency as high as 3.4%.

Strongly white emitting chiral D- and L- penicillamine capped CdS QDs have been prepared. Using CD spectroscopy we have shown that they are optically active with almost identical mirror images of one another in the range of 200–390 nm CD scans.

The first application of quantum dots as highly sensitive and selective luminescent probes for anions determination in aqueous solutions is described. The synthesized nanoparticles proved to be one of the most sensitive detection systems available for monitoring the highly toxic cyanide anion.

Photons at hν = 28 600 cm⁻¹ are captured by the organic part of a MOF-5 metal–organic framework and efficiently transferred to the inorganic part, behaving as a ZnO quantum dot, emitting at hν′ = 19 050 cm⁻¹.

A pentapeptide with a designed amino acid sequence was utilized to fabricate a QD dot-based sensor. Similarly, new chemo- and biosensors may be developed by taking advantage of multi-functionality system design.

We report the preparation and characterization of CdS photosensitized TiO₂ electrodes. Photocurrent spectroscopy indicate that the size of CdS Q-dots formed can be controlled via the concentration of stabilizer present during deposition.

Highly efficient pure-blue emitters based on environmentally friendly InP/ZnS quantum dots are developed for multicolour bioimaging and resonance energy transfer studies.

A robust precious metal-free photocatalyst system comprised of ligand-free ZnSe quantum dots and a phosphonic acid-functionalised Ni(cyclam) catalyst achieves efficient reduction of aqueous CO₂ to CO.

A CdSe/CdZnS nanocrystal modified with a SNARF dye exhibits a ratiometric sensing response in a physiologically relevant pH range (6–9) under linear and two-photon excitation.

CdSe/CdS core/shell quantum dots can be formed using alternating layer addition, that display ensemble quantum yield close to unity in solution, a monoexponential PL lifetime, short biexciton lifetimes and high modulation depth blinking, maintaining a high on-time fraction.

The power conversion efficiency of CdTe/CdS core/shell quantum dot sensitized solar cells achieves 3.8% and 5.25% under AM 1.5 G one sun (100 mW cm⁻²) and 0.12 sun illumination, respectively.

Co₃O₄ QD-based PPy NCs were synthesized by an in situ method. The NCs show 81.58% protection to MS. The antibacterial activity was comparable to that of Hexa disk antibiotics. The NCs were proved to be flexible, conducting, corrosion inhibiting, and antibacterial.

Promising 0D non-stoichiometric Cu_xIn_1−xS quantum dots show robust photodegradation towards gemifloxacin under visible light.

Efficacious H₂ and O₂ evolution over mediator free direct Z-scheme oriented 0D-2D CIS-BOI heterostructure photocatalyst.

Image (left) acquired using a camera which active layer is a photoconductive layer fabricated from a HgTe nanocrystal film (schematic on right).

Color coordinates of as cast and heat-treated samples at different times and temperatures.

Herein, we demonstrate for the first time matrix-free deposition of two dimensional (2D) MoS₂ nanosheets as an efficient hole transport layer (HTL) for colloidal lead sulfide (PbS) quantum dot (QD) solar cells.

Novel 0D/2D heterojunctions of WS₂ QDs/BiOCl exhibited enhanced visible-light driven photocatalytic activity.

Organic–inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells with a CdSe quantum dot/PCBM composite as an electron transport layer are reported by materials synthesis, characterization, device fabrication, performance measurements and large-scale first-principles calculations.

We present the all-inorganic QLEDs, including inorganic perovskite emitters (CsPbBr₃) and inorganic charge transport layers (CTLs), with emphasis on the significantly improved device stability and low turn-on voltage.

Our photoanode has achieved a record high photocurrent density and applied bias photon-to-current efficiency for BiVO₄-based photoanodes.

A facile surface imprinting polymerization one-pot synthesis strategy based on the electron-transfer induced fluorescence quenching mechanism for fluorescence detection of 4-nitrophenol.

We synthesized luminescent CsPbBr₃ nanocrystals with a high quantum yield and realized patterning and color-purity light-emitting diode applications.

The synthesis of luminescent and biocompatible carbon quantum dots is demonstrated from cabbage, a new carbonaceous biomaterial, for bio-imaging.

Graphene quantum dots synthesized from activated graphene using ultrasonication and chemical activation shows high edge-enriched states resulting in excellent luminescence and capacitance properties.

A facile hydrothermal synthesis route to N and S, N co-doped graphene quantum dots (GQDs) was developed by using citric acid as the C source and urea or thiourea as N and S sources.

A TiO₂-sensitization layer consisting of CdS nanocrystals closely packed around the linked CuInS₂ quantum dot-pillars yields a high conversion efficiency of 4.2% for the resulting sensitized solar cell.

Compared with the graphene quantum dots (GQDs), GQDs surface-passivated by polyethylene glycol (GQDs-PEG) possessed higher fluorescence performance and upconversion properties. And they exhibited an obvious and stable photocurrent under near-infrared (NIR) light.

Highly luminescent CuInS₂/ZnS (CIS/ZnS) core/shell quantum dots with a quantum yield of 65% were synthesized by a cation exchange reaction.

CdS quantum dot-sensitized Zn_1−xCd_xS materials show high visible-light photocatalytic H₂-production activity in aqueous solutions containing Na₂SO₃ and Na₂S sacrificial reagents.

Hydrophobic Quantum Dots (QDs) were solubilized in water using various ligands and surface coatings, in order to examine the hydrodynamic size, fluorescence quantum yield, photostability, chemical stability, and biocompatibility of water-soluble QDs.

Escherichia coli O157∶H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium in a food sample were simultaneously determined by measuring the intensity of the emission peaks of fluorescent nanoparticles at 525 nm and 705 nm.

Abundant oxygen vacancies confined in Co₃O₄ quantum dots provide more efficient Co(II), more active sites and improved conductivity for superior OER performance.