In this record we evaluate the emission properties of single quantum

In this record we evaluate the emission properties of single quantum dots inlayed inside a thin thiol containing polymer film. the quantum dot and the surrounding matrix. The benefits of colloidal semiconductor quantum dots (QD) as point-like fluorescent sources have long been accepted from the medical community1-5. The tunable emission wavelength and continuous absorption spectrum along with excellent photostability are some of the important features rendering QDs advantageous for a variety of applications from fluorescent tags to photovoltaics. Despite these advantages many of these applications suffer from another common house of QDs: intermittent fluorescence known as blinking6. This trend is definitely observed as the turning “on” and “off” of fluorescence emission under continuous excitation CDH5 of QDs. The distribution of “on” and “off” duration has been found to follow inverse power regulation statistics7 8 and various models have been suggested to explain the mechanism of QD blinking9-12. Although the exact mechanism underlying this behavior is not yet entirely obvious there is a consensus concerning the effect of charge within the emission state of QDs. When a charge carrier is definitely ejected from your CP-529414 core (via an Auger process or charge tunneling) and caught on its surface or in its close vicinity the QD is definitely thus charged and all subsequent excitons recombine non-radiatively resulting in a “dark” QD. This endures until CP-529414 the core charge is definitely neutralized. One of the major contributors to carrier capture states is the shell surface. Charge carriers may be caught either in surface states arising CP-529414 from incomplete passivation of shell surface atoms or in ligand claims. Hohng and Ha13 have shown the addition of 1-1000 mM of a short dithiol molecule such as β-mercaptoethanol (BME) results in an almost total suppression of blinking. It has been suggested that small thiol containing molecules which are mobile electron donors serve to eliminate surface electron traps avoiding their availability to QD core electrons. This is good observation that thiols experienced no effect on “off” time statistics (representing transitions from “off” to “on” due to release of a caught carrier and neutralization of the core) but substantially extended CP-529414 the period of “on” instances indicating a reduced probability of core charge carriers to be caught and lead to an “off” state13. Recently a non thiolated small ligand (propyl gallate) has also been reported to suppress blinking of QDs in CP-529414 aqueous remedy14. This observation shows that blinking suppression is not thiol specific but related to the profession of capture sites within the shell surface. Even though addition of such small ligand molecules to QD suspensions amazingly suppresses blinking it requires the QDs to be constantly immersed in the ligand remedy. This poses limitations on the kind of experiments and applications possible with these QDs. Solid state devices and many microscopy techniques require the QD be inlayed in a solid matrix usually a thin polymer film. Such films have been shown to allow observation instances of hours for solitary QDs but with pronounced blinking3 15 Recently two groups possess reported the synthesis of QDs consisting of a core overcoated having a solid crystalline shell of a higher bandgap semiconductor16 17 These QDs are reported to display considerably reduced blinking without the need for extra surface passivation methods. This improvement however comes in the expenses of larger size and a large potential barrier between the core and its surrounding environment. Some applications require a controlled way of transferring charges between the QD core and the surrounding matrix (rather than uncontrolled charge trapping at the surface) and a solid barrier will impede this. The overall performance of QD comprising devices such as current-driven (electrically pumped) light emitting diodes and solar cells is definitely directly related to the effectiveness of this charge transfer. The ability to suppress blinking of matrix inlayed QD while keeping a relatively low potential barrier between the core and its surroundings is definitely therefore.