• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.1181-1187
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• 2013

Water-dispersible ZnS:Mn nanocrystals were synthesized by capping the surface of the nanocrystal with O-(2-Aminoethyl)polyethylene glycol (PEG-$NH_2$, Mw = 10,000 g/mol) and O-(2-Carboxyethyl)polyethylene glycol (PEG-COOH, Mw = 10,000 g/mol) molecules. The modified PEG capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystal powders were thoroughly characterized by XRD, HR-TEM, EDXS, ICP-AES and FT-IR spectroscopy. The optical properties were also measured by UV/Vis and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopies. The PL spectra showed broad emission peaks at 600 nm with similar PL efficiencies of 7.68% (ZnS:Mn-PEG-NH2) and 9.18% (ZnS:Mn-PEG-COOH) respectively. The measured average particle sizes for the modified PEG capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystals by HR-TEM images were 5.6 nm (ZnS:Mn-PEG-NH2) and 6.4 nm (ZnS:Mn-PEG-COOH), which were also supported by Debye-Scherrer calculations. In addition, biological toxicity effects of the nanocrystals over the growth of wild type E. coli were investigated. They showed no biological toxicity to E. coli until very high concentration dosage of 1 mg/mL of the both nanocrystal samples.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.1741-1747
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• 2012

Water-dispersible ZnS:Mn nanocrystals were synthesized by capping the surface of the nanocrystals with conventional aminoacids ligands: serine and threonine. The aminoacids capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystal powders were characterized by XRD, HR-TEM, EDXS, ICP-AES and FT-IR spectroscopy. The optical properties were also measured by UV/Vis and solution photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopies in aqueous solvents. The solution PL spectra showed broad emission peaks around 600 nm with PL efficiencies of 9.7% (ZnS:Mn-Ser) and 15.4% (ZnS:Mn-Thr) respectively. The measured particle sizes for the aminoacid capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystals by HR-TEM images were about 3.0-4.0 nm, which were also supported by Debye-Scherrer calculations. In addition, cytotoxic effects of four aminoacids capped ZnS:Mn nanocrsystals over the growth of wild type E. coli were investigated. Although toxicity in the form of growth inhibition was observed with all the aminoacids capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystals at higher dose (1 mg/mL), ZnS:Mn-Met and ZnS:Mn-Thr appeared non-toxic at doses less than 100 ${\mu}g$/mL. Low biological toxicities were seen at doses less than 10 ${\mu}g$/ mL for all nanocrystals.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2012.02a
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• pp.533-534
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• 2012

Colloidal III-V semiconductor nanocrystal quantum dots (NQDs) have attracted attention as they can be applied in various areas such as LED, solar cell, biological imaging, and so on because they have decreased ionic lattices, lager exciton diameter, and reduced toxicity compared with II-VI compounds. However, the study and application of III-V semiconductor nanocrystals is limited by difficulties in control nucleation because the molecular bonds in III-V semiconductors are highly covalent compared to II-VI compounds. There is a need for a method that provides rapid and scalable production of highly quality nanoparticles. We present a new synthetic scheme for the preparation of InP nanocrystal quantum dots using new phosphorus precursor, P(SiMe2tbu)3. InP nanocrystals from 530nm to 600nm have been synthesized via the reaction of In(Ac)3 and new phosphorus precursor in noncoordinating solvent, ODE. This opens the way for the large-scale production of high quality Cd-free nanocrystal quantum dots.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.657-662
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• 2012

Mercaptoacetic acid (MAA) and mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystals were synthesized and their physical characteristics were examined by XRD, HR-TEM, EDXS, and FT-IR spectroscopy. The optical properties of the MPA capped ZnS:Mn nanocrystals dispersed in aqueous solution were also measured by UV/Vis and solution photoluminescence (PL) spectra, which showed a broad emission peak around 598 nm (orange light emissions) with calculated relative PL efficiency of 5.2%. Comparative toxicity evaluation of the uncoordinated ligands, MAA and MPA, with the corresponding ZnS:Mn nanocrystals revealed that the original ligands significantly suppressed the growth of wild type E. coli whereas the ligandcapped nanocrystals did not show significant toxic effects. The reduced cytotoxicity of the conjugated ZnS:Mn nanocrystals was also observed in NIH/3T3 mouse embryonic fibroblasts. These results imply that potential toxicities of the capping ligands can be neutralized on ZnS:Mn surface.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.1169-1176
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• 2014

In this study, water-dispersible ZnS:Mn nanocrystals were synthesized by capping the surface with conventional and simple structured amino acid ligands: $\small{L}$-Glycine and $\small{L}$-Alanine. The ZnS:Mn-Gly and ZnS:Mn-Ala nanocrystal powders were characterized by XRD, HR-TEM, EDXS, ICP-AES, and FT-IR spectroscopy. The optical properties were measured by UV-Visible and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The PL spectra for the ZnS:Mn-Gly and ZnS:Mn-Ala showed broad emission peaks at 599 nm and 607 nm with PL efficiencies of 6.5% and 7.8%, respectively. The measured average particle size from the HR-TEM images were $6.4{\pm}0.8$ nm (ZnS:Mn-Gly) and $4.1{\pm}0.5$ nm (ZnS:Mn-Ala), which were also supported by Debye-Scherrer calculations. In addition, the degree of aggregation of the nanocrystals in aqueous solutions were measured by a hydrodynamic light scattering method, which showed formation of sub-micrometer size aggregates for both ZnS:Mn-Gly ($273{\pm}94$ nm) and ZnS:Mn-Ala ($233{\pm}34$ nm) in water due to the intermolecular attraction between the capping amino acids molecules. Finally, the cytotoxic effects of ZnS:Mn-Gly and ZnS:Mn-Ala nanocrsystals over the growth of wild type E. coli were investigated. As a result, no toxicity was shown for the ZnS:Mn-Gly nanocrystal in the colloidal concentration region from 1 ${\mu}g/mL$ to 1000 ${\mu}g/mL$, while ZnS:Mn-Ala showed significant toxicity at 100 ${\mu}g/mL$.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.383-388
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• 2022

Currently, photodetectors are being extensively studied and developed for next-generation applications, such as in autonomous vehicles and image sensors. In this regard, all-inorganic metal halide perovskite (CsPbX₃; X = Cl, Br, and I) nanocrystals (NCs) have emerged as promising building blocks for various applications owing to their high absorption coefficients, tunable bandgaps, high defect tolerances, and solution processability. These features, which are typically required for the development of advanced optoelectronics, can be engineered by modifying the chemical compositions and surface chemistry of the NCs. Herein, we briefly review various strategies adopted for the application of CsPbX₃ perovskite NCs in photodetectors and for improving device performance. First, modifications of the chemical compositions of CsPbX₃ NCs to tune their optical bandgaps and improve the charge-transport mechanism are discussed. Second, the application of surface chemistry to improve oxidation resistance and carrier mobility is described. In the future, perovskite NCs with prospective features, such as non-toxicity and high resistance to external stimuli, are expected to be developed for practical applications.