Cu-doped ZnSe quantum dots were successfully synthesized in an aqueous solution using an internal doping method. The effects of ligand type, CuSe synthesis temperature, and heating time on Cu-doped ZnSe synthesis were systematically investigated. Of MPA, GSH, TGA, and NAC used as ligands, MPA was the optimal ligand as determined by PL spectrum analysis. In addition, the emission wavelength was found to depend on the synthesis temperature of the internal doping core of CuSe. As the temperature increased, the doping of Cu2+ was enhanced, and the emission wavelength band was redshifted; accordingly, the emission peaks moved from blue to green (up to 550 nm). Thus, the synthesis of Cu:ZnSe using internal doping in aqueous solutions is a potential method for ecomanufacturing of colortuned ZnSe quantum dots for display applications.
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The (Ga1-xZnx)(N1-xOx) solid solution is attracting extensive attention for photocatalytic water splitting and wastewater treatment owing to its narrow and controllable band gap. To optimize the photocatalytic performance of the solid solution, the key points are to decrease its band gap and recombination rate. In this study, (Ga1-xZnx)(N1-xOx) nanofibers with various Zn fractions are prepared by electrospinning followed by calcination and nitridation. The effect of the composition and crystallinity of electrospun oxide nanofibers on the morphology and optical properties of the obtained solid-solution nanofibers are systematically investigated. The results show that the final shape of the (Ga1-xZnx) (N1-xOx) material is greatly affected by the crystallinity of the oxide nanofibers before nitridation. The photocatalytic properties of (Ga1-xZnx)(N1-xOx) with different Ga:Zn atomic ratios are investigated by studying the degradation of rhodamine B under visible light irradiation.
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The SnSe single crystal shows an outstanding figure of merit (
In this study, (GaN)1-x(ZnO)x solid solution nanoparticles with a high zinc content are prepared by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis and subsequent nitridation. The structure and morphology of the samples are investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The characterization results show a phase transition from the Zn and Ga-based oxides (ZnO or ZnGa2O4) to a (GaN)1-x (ZnO)x solid solution under an NH3 atmosphere. The effect of the precursor solution concentration and nitridation temperature on the final products are systematically investigated to obtain (GaN)1-x(ZnO)x nanoparticles with a high Zn concentration. It is confirmed that the powder synthesized from the solution in which the ratio of Zn and Ga was set to 0.8:0.2, as the initial precursor composition was composed of about 0.8-mole fraction of Zn, similar to the initially set one, through nitriding treatment at 700°C. Besides, the synthesized nanoparticles exhibited the typical XRD pattern of (GaN)1-x(ZnO)x, and a strong absorption of visible light with a bandgap energy of approximately 2.78 eV, confirming their potential use as a hydrogen production photocatalyst.
Zinc selenide (ZnSe) nanoparticles were synthesized in aqueous solution using glutathione (GSH) as a ligand. The influence of the ligand content, reaction temperature, and hydroxyl ion concentration (pH) on the fabrication of the ZnSe particles was investigated. The optical properties of the synthesized ZnSe particles were characterized using various analytical techniques. The nanoparticles absorbed UV-vis light in the range of 350-400 nm, which is shorter than the absorption wavelength of bulk ZnSe particles (460 nm). The lowest ligand concentration for achieving good light absorption and emission properties was 0.6 mmol. The reaction temperature had an impact on the emission properties; photoluminescence spectroscopic analysis showed that the photo-discharge characteristics were greatly enhanced at high temperatures. These discharge characteristics were also affected by the hydroxyl ion concentration in solution; at pH 13, sound emission characteristics were observed, even at a low temperature of 25°C. The manufactured nanoparticles showed excellent light absorption and emission properties, suggesting the possibility of fabricating ZnSe QDs in aqueous solutions at low temperatures.
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Nano-sized ZnSe particles are successfully synthesized in an aqueous solution at room temperature using sodium borohydride (NaBH4) and thioglycolic acid (TGA) as the reducing agent and stabilizer, respectively. The effects of the mass ratio of the reducing agent to Se, stabilizer concentration, and stirring time on the synthesis of the ZnSe nanoparticles are evaluated. The light absorption/emission properties of the synthesized nanoparticles are characterized using ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, and particle size analyzer (PSA) techniques. At least one mass ratio (NaBH4/Se) of the reducing agent should be added to produce ZnSe nanoparticles finer than 10 nm and to absorb UV–vis light shorter than the ZnSe bulk absorption wavelength of 460 nm. As the ratio of the reducing agent increases, the absorption wavelengths in the UV-vis curves are blue-shifted. Stirring in the atmosphere acts as a deterrent to the reduction reaction and formation of nanoparticles, but if not stirred in the atmosphere, the result is on par with synthesis in a nitrogen atmosphere. The stabilizer, TGA, has an impact on the Zn precursor synthesis. The fabricated nanoparticles exhibit excellent photo-absorption/discharge characteristics, suggesting that ZnSe nanoparticles can be alloyed without the need for organic solutions or high-temperature environments.
Core/shell CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) are synthesized by a microfluidic reactor-assisted continuous reactor system. Photoluminescence and absorbance of synthesized CdSe/ZnS core/shell QDs are investigated by fluorescence spectrophotometry and online UV-Vis spectrometry. Three reaction conditions, namely; the shell coating reaction temperature, the shell coating reaction time, and the ZnS/CdSe precursor volume ratio, are combined in the synthesis process. The quantum yield of the synthesized CdSe QDs is determined for each condition. CdSe/ZnS QDs with a higher quantum yield are obtained compared to the discontinuous microfluidic reactor synthesis system. The maximum quantum efficiency is 98.3% when the reaction temperature, reaction time, and ZnS/CdSe ratio are 270°C, 10 s, and 0.05, respectively. Obtained results indicate that a continuous synthesis of the Core/shell CdSe/ZnS QDs with a high quantum efficiency could be achieved by isolating the reaction from the external environment.
In this study, we investigate the optical properties of InP/ZnS core/shell quantum dots (QDs) by controlling the synthesis temperature of InP. The size of InP determined by the empirical formula tends to increase with temperature: the size of InP synthesized at 140oC and 220oC is 2.46 nm and 4.52 nm, respectively. However, the photoluminescence (PL) spectrum of InP is not observed because of the formation of defects on the InP surface. The growth of InP is observed during the deposition of the shell (ZnS) on the synthesized InP, which is ended up with green-red PL spectrum. We can adjust the PL spectrum and absorption spectrum of InP/ZnS by simply adjusting the core temperature. Thus, we conclude that there exists an optimum shell thickness for the QDs according to the size.
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In this study, simple chemical synthesis of green emitting Cd-free InP/ZnS QDs is accomplished by reacting In, P, Zn, and S precursors by one-pot process. The particle size and the optical properties were tailored, by controlling various experimental conditions, including [In]/[MA] (MA: myristic acid) mole ratio, reaction temperature and reaction time. The results of ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), and of photoluminescence (PL), reveal that the exciton emission of InP was improved by surface coating, with a layer of ZnS. We report the correlation between each experimental condition and the luminescent properties of InP/ZnS core/shell QDs. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) techniques were used to characterize the as-synthesized QDs. In contrast to core nanoparticles, InP/ZnS core/shell treated with surface coating shows a clear ultraviolet peak. Besides this work, we need to study what clearly determines the shell kinetic growth mechanism of InP/ZnS core shell QDs.
We have investigated the washing method of as-synthesized CdSe/ZnS core/shell structure quantum dots (QDs) and the effective surface passivation method of the washed QDs using PMMA. The quantum yield (QY%) of assynthesized QDs decreases with time, from 79.3% to 21.1%, owing to surface reaction with residual organics. The decreased QY% is restored to the QY% of as-synthesized QDs by washing. However, the QY% of washed QDs also decreases with time, owing to the absence of surface passivation layer. On the other hand, the PMMA-treated QDs maintained a relatively higher QY% after washing than that of the washed QDs that were kept in toluene solution for 30 days. Formation of the PMMA coating layer on CdSe/ZnS QD surface is confirmed by HR-TEM and FT-IR. It is found that the PMMA surface coating, when combined with washing, is useful to be applied in the storage of QDs, owing to its long-term stability.
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Quantum dots (QDs) are capable of controlling the typical emission and absorption wavelengths because of the bandgap widening effect of nanometer-sized particles. These phosphor particles have been used in optical devices, photovoltaic devices, advanced display devices, and several biomedical complexes. In this study, we synthesize ZnSe QDs with controlled surface defects by a heating-up method. The optical properties of the synthesized particles are analyzed using UV-visible and photoluminescence (PL) measurements. Calculations indicate nearly monodisperse particles with a size of about 5.1 nm at 260°C (full width at half maximum = 27.7 nm). Furthermore, the study results confirm that successful doping is achieved by adding Eu3+ preparing the growth phase of the ZnSe:Eu QDs when heating-up method. Further, we investigate the correlation between the surface defects and the luminescent properties of the QDs.
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We report on an all-solution-processed hydrothermal method to control the morphology of ZnO nanostructures on Si substrates from three-dimensional hemispherical structures to two-dimensional thin film layers, by controlling the seed layer and the molar contents of surfactants during their primary growth. The size and the density of the seed layer, which is composed of ZnO nanodots, change with variation in the solute concentration. The ZnO nanodots act as heterogeneous nucleation sites for the main ZnO nanostructures. When the seed layer concentration is increased, the ZnO nanostructures change from a hemispherical shape to a thin film structure, formed by densely packed ZnO hemispheres. In addition, the morphology of the ZnO layer is systematically controlled by using trisodium citrate, which acts as a surfactant to enhance the lateral growth of ZnO crystals rather than a preferential one-dimensional growth along the c-direction. X-ray diffraction and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy results reveal that the ZnO structure is wurtzite and did not incorporate any impurities from the surfactants used in this study.
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This study investigates the influence of sintering temperature on the magnetic properties and frequency dispersion of the complex permeability of Ni–Zn–Cu ferrites used for magnetic shielding in near-field communication (NFC) systems. Sintered specimens of (Ni0.7Zn0.3)0.96Cu0.04Fe2O4 are prepared by conventional ceramic processing. The complex permeability is measured by an RF impedance analyzer in the range of 1 MHz to 1.8 GHz. The real and imaginary parts of the complex permeability depend sensitively on the sintering temperature, which is closely related to the microstructure, including grain size and pore distribution. In particular, internal pores within grains produced by rapid grain growth decrease the permeability and increase the magnetic loss at the operating frequency of NFC (13.56 MHz). At the optimized sintering temperature (1225-1250°C), the highest permeability and lowest magnetic loss can be obtained.
We report on the successful fabrication of ZnO nanorod (NR)/polystyrene (PS) nanosphere hybrid nanostructure by combining drop coating and hydrothermal methods. Especially, by adopting an atomic layer deposition method for seed layer formation, very uniform ZnO NR structure is grown on the complicated PS surfaces. By using zinc nitrate hexahydrate [Zn(NO3)2 ·6H2O] and hexamine [(CH2)6N4] as sources for Zn and O in hydrothermal process, hexagonal shaped single crystal ZnO NRs are synthesized without dissolution of PS in hydrothermal solution. X-ray diffraction results show that the ZnO NRs are grown along c-axis with single crystalline structure and there is no trace of impurities or unintentionally formed intermetallic compounds. Photoluminescence spectrum measured at room temperature for the ZnO NRs on flat Si and PS show typical two emission bands, which are corresponding to the band-edge and deep level emissions in ZnO crystal. Based on these structural and optical investigations, we confirm that the ZnO NRs can be grown well even on the complicated PS surface morphology to form the chestnut-shaped hybrid nanostructures for the energy generation and storage applications.
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We report on the succesful fabrication of ZnO nanorod (NR)-based robust piezoelectric nanogenerators (PNGs) by using Cu foil substrate. The ZnO NRs are successfully grown on the Cu foil substrate by using all solution based method, a two step hydrothermal synthesis. The ZnO NRs are grown along c-axis well with an average diameter of 75~80 nm and length of 1~1.5 μm. The ZnO NRs showed abnormal photoluminescence specrta which is attributed from surface plasmon resonance assistant enhancement at specific wavelength. The PNGs on the SUS substrates show typical piezoelectric output performance which showing a frequency dependent voltage enhancement and polarity dependent charging and discharging characteristics. The output voltage range is 0.79~2.28 V with variation of input strain frequency of 1.8~3.9 Hz. The PNG on Cu foil shows reliable output performance even at the operation over 200 times without showing degradation of output voltage. The current output from the PNG is 0.7 μA/cm2 which is a typical output range from the ZnO NR-based PNGs. These performance enhancement is attributed from the high flexibility, high electrical conductivity and excellent heat dissipation properties of the Cu foil as a substrate.
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