Low-cost and large-scale synthesis of CuInS2 and CuInS2/ZnS quantum dots in diesel

• Published in: Optical materials Vol. 37; pp. 823 - 827
• Main Authors: Thuy, Nguyen Thi Minh, Chi, Tran Thi Kim, Thuy, Ung Thi Dieu, Liem, Nguyen Quang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier B.V 01.11.2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; CuInS2; Diesel; Exact sciences and technology; Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications); Heating-up; Optical materials; Optical properties and condensed-matter spectroscopy and other interactions of matter with particles and radiation; Optical properties of low-dimensional, mesoscopic, and nanoscale materials and structures; Optics; Physics; Quantum dots; Raman; Heating-up; Diesel; Raman; Quantum dots; CuInS2; Raman spectra; Ternary compounds; Photoluminescence; Binary compounds; XRD; Transmission electron microscopy; Optical properties; Optical materials; Zinc Sulfides; CuInS; Absorption spectra
• ISSN: 0925-3467; 1873-1252
• DOI: 10.1016/j.optmat.2014.09.016

•CIS and CIS/ZnS core/shell QDs were synthesized by heating-up method using diesel as the high boiling-point reaction solvent.•The use of diesel provides a low-cost and large-scale procedure for the synthesis of CIS and CIS/ZnS core/shell QDs.•The highest quality CIS QDs were obtained at the reaction temperature of 210°C for 15min and the Cu:In molar ratio of 1:1.•The absorption and photoluminescence spectra showed the quantum confinement effect and quality of the synthesized CIS QDs. In this paper, we present the results of the syntheses of CuInS2 (CIS) and CIS/ZnS core/shell quantum dots (QDs) by heating-up method using diesel as the high boiling-point reaction solvent. The influences of the synthesis parameters, namely the reaction temperature, growth time and the Cu:In molar ratio to the structure and optical properties of the obtained QDs were systematically investigated. CIS QDs were synthesised at the reaction temperatures of 200–230°C for 5–45min and the Cu:In molar ratios of 0.5:1–1.5:1. The optical characteristics from absorption and photoluminescence spectra have been used as indicators to the quality of the synthesised QDs, showing clearly that the highest quality CIS QDs were obtained at the reaction temperature of 210°C for 15min with the Cu:In molar ratio of 1:1. For such QDs, their mean size of 3.5nm was determined directly from the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image and calculated from their XRD pattern.