In Situ X-ray Scattering Reveals Coarsening Rates of Superlattices Self-Assembled from Electrostatically Stabilized Metal Nanocrystals Depend Nonmonotonically on Driving Force.

Self-assembly of colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) into superlattices (SLs) is an appealing strategy to design hierarchically organized materials with promising functionalities. Mechanistic studies are still needed to uncover the design principles for SL self-assembly, but such studies have been difficult to perform due to the fast time and short length scales of NC systems. To address this challenge, we developed an apparatus to directly measure the evolving phases in situ and in real time of an electrostatically stabilized Au NC solution before, during, and after it is quenched to form SLs using small-angle X-ray scattering. By developing a quantitative model, we fit the time-dependent scattering patterns to obtain the phase diagram of the system and the kinetics of the colloidal and SL phases as a function of varying quench conditions. The extracted phase diagram is consistent with particles whose interactions are short in range relative to their diameter. We find the degree of SL order is primarily determined by fast (subsecond) initial nucleation and growth kinetics, while coarsening at later times depends nonmonotonically on the driving force for self-assembly. We validate these results by direct comparison with simulations and use them to suggest dynamic design principles to optimize the crystallinity within a finite time window. The combination of this measurement methodology, quantitative analysis, and simulation should be generalizable to elucidate and better control the microscopic self-assembly pathways of a wide range of bottom-up assembled systems and architectures.

Stimuli-Responsive Surface Ligands for Direct Lithography of Functional Inorganic Nanomaterials.

ConspectusColloidal nanocrystals (NCs) have emerged as a diverse class of materials with tunable composition, size, shape, and surface chemistry. From their facile syntheses to unique optoelectronic properties, these solution-processed nanomaterials are a promising alternative to materials grown as bulk crystals or by vapor-phase methods. However, the integration of colloidal nanomaterials in real-world devices is held back by challenges in making patterned NC films with the resolution, throughput, and cost demanded by device components and applications. Therefore, suitable approaches to pattern NCs need to be established to aid the transition from individual proof-of-concept NC devices to integrated and multiplexed technological systems.In this Account, we discuss the development of stimuli-sensitive surface ligands that enable NCs to be patterned directly with good pattern fidelity while retaining desirable properties. We focus on rationally selected ligands that enable changes in the NC dispersibility by responding to light, electron beam, and/or heat. First, we summarize the fundamental forces between colloidal NCs and discuss the principles behind NC stabilization/destabilization. These principles are applied to understanding the mechanisms of the NC dispersibility change upon stimuli-induced ligand modifications. Six ligand-based patterning mechanisms are introduced: ligand cross-linking, ligand decomposition, ligand desorption, in situ ligand exchange, ion/ligand binding, and ligand-aided increase of ionic strength. We discuss examples of stimuli-sensitive ligands that fall under each mechanism, including their chemical transformations, and address how these ligands are used to pattern either sterically or electrostatically stabilized colloidal NCs. Following that, we explain the rationale behind the exploration of different types of stimuli, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each stimulus.We then discuss relevant figures-of-merit that should be considered when choosing a particular ligand chemistry or stimulus for patterning NCs. These figures-of-merit pertain to either the pattern quality (e.g., resolution, edge and surface roughness, layer thickness), or to the NC material quality (e.g., photo/electro-luminescence, electrical conductivity, inorganic fraction). We outline the importance of these properties and provide insights on optimizing them. Both the pattern quality and NC quality impact the performance of patterned NC devices such as field-effect transistors, light-emitting diodes, color-conversion pixels, photodetectors, and diffractive optical elements. We also give examples of proof-of-concept patterned NC devices and evaluate their performance. Finally, we provide an outlook on further expanding the chemistry of stimuli-sensitive ligands, improving the NC pattern quality, progress toward 3D printing, and other potential research directions. Ultimately, we hope that the development of a patterning toolbox for NCs will expedite their implementation in a broad range of applications.

Diffusion-Limited Kinetics of Isovalent Cation Exchange in III-V Nanocrystals Dispersed in Molten Salt Reaction Media.

The goal of this work is to determine the kinetic factors that govern isovalent cation exchange in III-V colloidal quantum dots using molten salts as the solvent and cation source. We focus on the reactions of InP + GaI3→ In1-xGaxP and InAs + GaI3→ In1-xGaxAs to create technologically important ternary III-V phases. We find that the molten salt reaction medium causes the transformation of nearly spherical InP nanocrystals to tetrahedron-shaped In1-xGaxP nanocrystals. Furthermore, we determine that the activation energy for the cation exchange reaction is 0.9 eV for incorporation of Ga into InP and 1.2 eV for incorporation of Ga into InAs, both much lower than the measured values in bulk semiconductors. Next, we use powder XRD simulations to constrain our understanding of the structure of the In1-xGaxP nanocrystals. Together our results reveal several important features of molten salt-mediated cation exchange and provide guidance for future development of these materials.

Direct Heat-Induced Patterning of Inorganic Nanomaterials.

Patterning functional inorganic nanomaterials is an important process for advanced manufacturing of quantum dot (QD) electronic and optoelectronic devices. This is typically achieved by inkjet printing, microcontact printing, and photo- and e-beam lithography. Here, we investigate a different patterning approach that utilizes local heating, which can be generated by various sources, such as UV-, visible-, and IR-illumination, or by proximity heat transfer. This direct thermal lithography method, termed here heat-induced patterning of inorganic nanomaterials (HIPIN), uses colloidal nanomaterials with thermally unstable surface ligands. We designed several families of such ligands and investigated their chemical and physical transformations responsible for heat-induced changes of nanocrystal solubility. Compared to traditional photolithography using photochemical surface reactions, HIPIN extends the scope of direct optical lithography toward longer wavelengths of visible (532 nm) and infrared (10.6 µm) radiation, which is necessary for patterning optically thick layers (e.g., 1.2 µm) of light-absorbing nanomaterials. HIPIN enables patterning of features defined by the diffraction-limited beam size. Our approach can be used for direct patterning of metal, semiconductor, and dielectric nanomaterials. Patterned semiconductor QDs retain the majority of their as-synthesized photoluminescence quantum yield. This work demonstrates the generality of thermal patterning of nanomaterials and provides a new path for additive device manufacturing using diverse colloidal nanoscale building blocks.

Self-assembly of nanocrystals into strongly electronically coupled all-inorganic supercrystals.

Colloidal nanocrystals of metals, semiconductors, and other functional materials can self-assemble into long-range ordered crystalline and quasicrystalline phases, but insulating organic surface ligands prevent the development of collective electronic states in ordered nanocrystal assemblies. We reversibly self-assembled colloidal nanocrystals of gold, platinum, nickel, lead sulfide, and lead selenide with conductive inorganic ligands into supercrystals exhibiting optical and electronic properties consistent with strong electronic coupling between the constituent nanocrystals. The phase behavior of charge-stabilized nanocrystals can be rationalized and navigated with phase diagrams computed for particles interacting through short-range attractive potentials. By finely tuning interparticle interactions, the assembly was directed either through one-step nucleation or nonclassical two-step nucleation pathways. In the latter case, the nucleation was preceded by the formation of two metastable colloidal fluids.

Nanoscale Disorder Generates Subdiffusive Heat Transport in Self-Assembled Nanocrystal Films.

Investigating the impact of nanoscale heterogeneity on heat transport requires a spatiotemporal probe of temperature on the length and time scales intrinsic to heat navigating nanoscale defects. Here, we use stroboscopic optical scattering microscopy to visualize nanoscale heat transport in disordered films of gold nanocrystals. We find that heat transport appears subdiffusive at the nanoscale. Finite element simulations show that tortuosity of the heat flow underlies the subdiffusive transport, owing to a distribution of nonconductive voids. Thus, while heat travels diffusively through contiguous regions of the film, the tortuosity causes heat to navigate circuitous pathways that make the observed mean-squared expansion of an initially localized temperature distribution appear subdiffusive on length scales comparable to the voids. Our approach should be broadly applicable to uncover the impact of both designed and unintended heterogeneities in a wide range of materials and devices that can affect more commonly used spatially averaged thermal transport measurements.

Direct Optical Lithography of Colloidal Metal Oxide Nanomaterials for Diffractive Optical Elements with 2π Phase Control.

Spatially patterned dielectric materials are ubiquitous in electronic, photonic, and optoelectronic devices. These patterns are typically made by subtractive or additive approaches utilizing vapor-phase reagents. On the other hand, recent advances in solution-phase synthesis of oxide nanomaterials have unlocked a materials library with greater compositional, microstructural, and interfacial tunability. However, methods to pattern and integrate these nanomaterials in real-world devices are less established. In this work, we directly optically pattern oxide nanoparticles (NPs) by mixing them with photosensitive diazo-2-naphthol-4-sulfonic acid and irradiating with widely available 405 nm light. We demonstrate the direct optical lithography of ZrO2, TiO2, HfO2, and ITO NPs and investigate the chemical and physical changes responsible for this photoinduced decrease in solubility. Micron-thick layers of amorphous ZrO2 NPs were patterned with micron resolution and shown to allow 2π phase control of visible light. We also show multilayer patterning and use it to fabricate features with different thicknesses and distinct structural colors. Upon annealing at 400 °C, the deposited ZrO2 structures have excellent optical transparency across a wide wavelength range (0.3-10 µm), a high refractive index (n = 1.84 at 633 nm), and are optically smooth. We then fabricate diffractive optical elements, such as binary phase diffraction gratings, that show efficient diffractive behavior and good thermal stability. Different oxide NPs can also be mixed prior to patterning, providing a high level of material tunability. This work demonstrates a general patterning approach that harnesses the processability and diversity of colloidal oxide nanomaterials for use in photonic applications.

Direct Optical Patterning of Quantum Dot Light-Emitting Diodes via In Situ Ligand Exchange.

Precise patterning of quantum dot (QD) layers is an important prerequisite for fabricating QD light-emitting diode (QLED) displays and other optoelectronic devices. However, conventional patterning methods cannot simultaneously meet the stringent requirements of resolution, throughput, and uniformity of the pattern profile while maintaining a high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of the patterned QD layers. Here, a specially designed nanocrystal ink is introduced, "photopatternable emissive nanocrystals" (PENs), which satisfies these requirements. Photoacid generators in the PEN inks allow photoresist-free, high-resolution optical patterning of QDs through photochemical reactions and in situ ligand exchange in QD films. Various fluorescence and electroluminescence patterns with a feature size down to ≈1.5 µm are demonstrated using red, green, and blue PEN inks. The patterned QD films maintain ≈75% of original PLQY and the electroluminescence characteristics of the patterned QLEDs are comparable to thopse of non-patterned control devices. The patterning mechanism is elucidated by in-depth investigation of the photochemical transformations of the photoacid generators and changes in the optical properties of the QDs at each patterning step. This advanced patterning method provides a new way for additive manufacturing of integrated optoelectronic devices using colloidal QDs.

Heat-driven acoustic phonons in lamellar nanoplatelet assemblies.

Colloidal CdSe nanoplatelets, with the electronic structure of quantum wells, self-assemble into lamellar stacks due to large co-facial van der Waals attractions. These lamellar stacks are shown to display coherent acoustic phonons that are detected from oscillatory changes in the absorption spectrum observed in infrared pump, electronic probe measurements. Rather than direct electronic excitation of the nanocrystals using a femtosecond laser, impulsive transfer of heat from the organic ligand shell, excited at C-H stretching vibrational resonances, to the inorganic core of individual nanoplatelets occurs on a time-scale of <100 ps. This heat transfer drives in-phase longitudinal acoustic phonons of the nanoplatelet lamellae, which are accompanied by subtle deformations along the nanoplatelet short axes. The frequencies of the oscillations vary from 0.7 to 2 GHz (3-8 µeV and 0.5-1 ns oscillation period) depending on the thickness of the nanoplatelets-but not their lateral areas-and the temperature of the sample. Temperature-dependence of the acoustic phonon frequency conveys a substantial stiffening of the organic ligand bonds between nanoplatelets with reduced temperature. These results demonstrate a potential for acoustic modulation of the excitonic structure of nanocrystal assemblies in self-assembled anisotropic semiconductor systems at temperatures at or above 300 K.

Nonequilibrium Thermodynamics of Colloidal Gold Nanocrystals Monitored by Ultrafast Electron Diffraction and Optical Scattering Microscopy.

Metal nanocrystals exhibit important optoelectronic and photocatalytic functionalities in response to light. These dynamic energy conversion processes have been commonly studied by transient optical probes to date, but an understanding of the atomistic response following photoexcitation has remained elusive. Here, we use femtosecond resolution electron diffraction to investigate transient lattice responses in optically excited colloidal gold nanocrystals, revealing the effects of nanocrystal size and surface ligands on the electron-phonon coupling and thermal relaxation dynamics. First, we uncover a strong size effect on the electron-phonon coupling, which arises from reduced dielectric screening at the nanocrystal surfaces and prevails independent of the optical excitation mechanism (i.e., inter- and intraband). Second, we find that surface ligands act as a tuning parameter for hot carrier cooling. Particularly, gold nanocrystals with thiol-based ligands show significantly slower carrier cooling as compared to amine-based ligands under intraband optical excitation due to electronic coupling at the nanocrystal/ligand interfaces. Finally, we spatiotemporally resolve thermal transport and heat dissipation in photoexcited nanocrystal films by combining electron diffraction with stroboscopic elastic scattering microscopy. Taken together, we resolve the distinct thermal relaxation time scales ranging from 1 ps to 100 ns associated with the multiple interfaces through which heat flows at the nanoscale. Our findings provide insights into optimization of gold nanocrystals and their thin films for photocatalysis and thermoelectric applications.

Quantized Reaction Pathways for Solution Synthesis of Colloidal ZnSe Nanostructures: A Connection between Clusters, Nanowires, and Two-Dimensional Nanoplatelets.

The morphology of nanocrystals serves as a powerful handle to modulate their functional properties. For semiconducting nanostructures, the shape is no less important than the size and composition, in terms of determining the electronic structure. For example, in the case of nanoplatelets (NPLs), their two-dimensional (2D) electronic structure and atomic precision along the axis of quantum confinement makes them well-suited as pure color emitters and optical gain media. In this study, we describe synthetic efforts to develop ZnSe NPLs emitting in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum. We focus on two populations of NPLs, the first having a sharp absorption onset at 345 nm and a previously unreported species with an absorption onset at 380 nm. Interestingly, we observe that the nanoplatelets are one step in a quantized reaction pathway that starts with (zero-dimensional (0D)) magic-sized clusters, then proceeds through the formation of (one-dimensional (1D)) nanowires toward the (2D) "345 nm" species of NPLs, which finally interconvert into the "380 nm" NPL species. We seek to rationalize this evolution of the morphology, in terms of a general free-energy landscape, which, under reaction control, allows for the isolation of well-defined structures, while thermodynamic control leads to the formation of three-dimensional (3D) nanocrystals.

Luminescent Surfaces with Tailored Angular Emission for Compact Dark-Field Imaging Devices.

Dark-field microscopy is a standard imaging technique widely employed in biology that provides high image contrast for a broad range of unstained specimens1. Unlike bright-field microscopy, it accentuates high spatial frequencies and can therefore be used to emphasize and resolve small features. However, the use of dark-field microscopy for reliable analysis of blood cells, bacteria, algae, and other marine organisms often requires specialized, bulky microscope systems, and expensive additional components, such as dark-field-compatible objectives or condensers2,3. Here, we propose to simplify and downsize dark-field microscopy equipment by generating the high-angle illumination cone required for dark field microscopy directly within the sample substrate. We introduce a luminescent photonic substrate with a controlled angular emission profile and demonstrate its ability to generate high-contrast dark-field images of micrometre-sized living organisms using standard optical microscopy equipment. This new type of substrate forms the basis for miniaturized lab-on-chip dark-field imaging devices, compatible with simple and compact light microscopes.

Polarized near-infrared intersubband absorptions in CdSe colloidal quantum wells.

Colloidal quantum wells are two-dimensional materials grown with atomically-precise thickness that dictates their electronic structure. Although intersubband absorption in epitaxial quantum wells is well-known, analogous observations in non-epitaxial two-dimensional materials are sparse. Here we show that CdSe nanoplatelet quantum wells have narrow (30-200 meV), polarized intersubband absorption features when photoexcited or under applied bias, which can be tuned by thickness across the near-infrared (NIR) spectral window (900-1600 nm) inclusive of important telecommunications wavelengths. By examination of the optical absorption and polarization-resolved measurements, the NIR absorptions are assigned to electron intersubband transitions. Under photoexcitation, the intersubband features display hot carrier and Auger recombination effects similar to excitonic absorptions. Sequenced two-color photoexcitation permits the sub-picosecond modulation of the carrier temperature in such colloidal quantum wells. This work suggests that colloidal quantum wells may be promising building blocks for NIR technologies.

Terahertz-Driven Stark Spectroscopy of CdSe and CdSe-CdS Core-Shell Quantum Dots.

The effects of large external fields on semiconductor nanostructures could reveal much about field-induced shifting of electronic states and their dynamical responses and could enable electro-optic device applications that require large and rapid changes in optical properties. Studies of quasi-dc electric field modulation of quantum dot (QD) properties have been limited by electrostatic breakdown processes observed under high externally applied field levels. To circumvent this, here we apply ultrafast terahertz (THz) electric fields with switching times on the order of 1 ps. We show that a pulsed THz electric field, enhanced by a microslit field enhancement structure (FES), can strongly manipulate the optical absorption properties of a thin film of CdSe and CdSe-CdS core-shell QDs on the subpicosecond time scale with spectral shifts that span the visible to near-IR range. Numerical simulations using a semiempirical tight binding model show that the band gap of the QD film can be shifted by as much a 79 meV during these time scales. The results allow a basic understanding of the field-induced shifting of electronic levels and suggest electro-optic device applications.

Colloidal Atomic Layer Deposition with Stationary Reactant Phases Enables Precise Synthesis of "Digital" II-VI Nano-heterostructures with Exquisite Control of Confinement and Strain.

In contrast to molecular systems, which are defined with atomic precision, nanomaterials generally show some heterogeneity in size, shape, and composition. The sample inhomogeneity translates into a distribution of energy levels, band gaps, work functions, and other characteristics, which detrimentally affect practically every property of functional nanomaterials. We discuss a novel synthetic strategy, colloidal atomic layer deposition (c-ALD) with stationary reactant phases, which largely circumvents the limitations of traditional colloidal syntheses of nano-heterostructures with atomic precision. This approach allows for significant reduction of inhomogeneity in nanomaterials in complex nanostructures without compromising their structural perfection and enables the synthesis of epitaxial nano-heterostructures of unprecedented complexity. The improved synthetic control ultimately enables bandgap and strain engineering in colloidal nanomaterials with close to atomic accuracy. To demonstrate the power of the new c-ALD method, we synthesize a library of complex II-VI semiconductor nanoplatelet heterostructures. By combining spectroscopic and computational studies, we elucidate the subtle interplay between quantum confinement and strain effects on the optical properties of semiconductor nanostructures.

Systematic Mapping of Binary Nanocrystal Superlattices: The Role of Topology in Phase Selection.

The self-assembly of two sizes of spherical nanocrystals has revealed a surprisingly diverse library of structures. To date, at least 15 distinct binary nanocrystal superlattice (BNSL) structures have been identified. The stability of these binary phases cannot be fully explained using the traditional conceptual framework treating the assembly process as entropy-driven crystallization of rigid spherical particles. Such deviation from hard sphere behavior may be explained by the soft and deformable layer of ligands that envelops the nanocrystals, which contributes significantly to the overall size and shape of assembling particles. In this work, we describe a set of experiments designed to elucidate the role of the ligand corona in shaping the thermodynamics and kinetics of BNSL assembly. Using hydrocarbon-capped Au and PbS nanocrystals as a model binary system, we systematically tuned the core radius ( R) and ligand chain length ( L) of particles and subsequently assembled them into binary superlattices. The resulting database of binary structures enabled a detailed analysis of the role of effective nanocrystal size ratio, as well as softness expressed as L/ R, in directing the assembly of binary structures. This catalog of superlattices allowed us to not only study the frequency of different phases but to also systematically measure the geometric parameters of the BNSLs. This analysis allowed us to evaluate new theoretical models treating the cocrystallization of deformable spheres and to formulate new hypotheses about the factors affecting the nucleation and growth of the binary superlattices. Among other insights, our results suggest that the relative abundance of the binary phases observed may be explained not only by considerations of thermodynamic stability, but also by a postulated preordering of the binary fluid into local structures with icosahedral or polytetrahedral symmetry prior to nucleation.

Semiconductor Nanoplatelet Excimers.

Excimers, a portmanteau of "excited dimer", are transient species that are formed from the electronic interaction of a fluorophore in the excited state with a neighbor in the ground state, which have found extensive use as laser gain media. Although common in molecular fluorophores, this work presents evidence for the formation of excimers in a new class of materials: atomically precise two-dimensional semiconductor nanoplatelets. Colloidal nanoplatelets of CdSe display two-color photoluminescence resolved at low temperatures with one band attributed to band-edge fluorescence and a second, red band attributed to excimer fluorescence. Previously reasonable explanations for two-color fluorescence, such as charging, are shown to be inconsistent with additional evidence. As with excimers in other materials systems, excimer emission is increased by increasing nanoplatelet concentration and the degree of cofacial stacking. Consistent with their promise as low-threshold gain media, amplified spontaneous emission emerges from the excimer emission line.

Multiexciton Lifetimes Reveal Triexciton Emission Pathway in CdSe Nanocrystals.

Multiexcitons in emerging semiconducting nanomaterials play a critical role in potential optoelectronic and quantum computational devices. We describe photon resolved single molecule methods to directly probe the dynamics of biexcitons and triexcitons in colloidal CdSe quantum dots. We confirm that biexcitons emit from a spin-correlated state, consistent with statistical scaling. Contrary to current understanding, we find that triexciton emission is dominated by band-edge 1Se1S3/2 recombination rather than the higher energy 1Pe1P3/2 recombination.

A Ligand System for the Flexible Functionalization of Quantum Dots via Click Chemistry.

We present a novel ligand, 5-norbornene-2-nonanoic acid, which can be directly added during established quantum dot (QD) syntheses in organic solvents to generate "clickable" QDs at a few hundred nmol scale. This ligand has a carboxyl group at one terminus to bind to the surface of QDs and a norbornene group at the opposite end that enables straightforward phase transfer of QDs into aqueous solutions via efficient norbornene/tetrazine click chemistry. Our ligand system removes the traditional ligand-exchange step and can produce water-soluble QDs with a high quantum yield and a small hydrodynamic diameter of approximately 12 nm at an order of magnitude higher scale than previous methods. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach by incubating azido-functionalized CdSe/CdS QDs with 4T1 cancer cells that are metabolically labeled with a dibenzocyclooctyne-bearing unnatural sugar. The QDs exhibit high targeting efficiency and minimal nonspecific binding.

Next-generation in vivo optical imaging with short-wave infrared quantum dots.

For in vivo imaging, the short-wavelength infrared region (SWIR; 1000-2000 nm) provides several advantages over the visible and near-infrared regions: general lack of autofluorescence, low light absorption by blood and tissue, and reduced scattering. However, the lack of versatile and functional SWIR emitters has prevented the general adoption of SWIR imaging by the biomedical research community. Here, we introduce a class of high-quality SWIR-emissive indium-arsenide-based quantum dots (QDs) that are readily modifiable for various functional imaging applications, and that exhibit narrow and size-tunable emission and a dramatically higher emission quantum yield than previously described SWIR probes. To demonstrate the unprecedented combination of deep penetration, high spatial resolution, multicolor imaging and fast-acquisition-speed afforded by the SWIR QDs, we quantified, in mice, the metabolic turnover rates of lipoproteins in several organs simultaneously and in real time as well as heartbeat and breathing rates in awake and unrestrained animals, and generated detailed three-dimensional quantitative flow maps of the mouse brain vasculature.