Deciphering Surface Ligand Density of Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals : Shape Matters

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

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Author(s)

  • Wei Chen
  • Han Xiao
  • Minyi Zhang
  • Cuifang Wang
  • Jiayi Chen
  • Rundong Mao
  • Linwei Jiang
  • Mark A. Buntine
  • Zongping Shao
  • Xuyong Yang
  • Chunsen Li
  • Guohua Jia

Detail(s)

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)29104–29114
Journal / PublicationJournal of the American Chemical Society
Volume146
Issue number42
Online published13 Oct 2024
Publication statusPublished - 23 Oct 2024

Abstract

Surface chemistry of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) is of paramount importance because it profoundly impacts their physical and chemical properties, processing, and performance. Herein, we report the effect of the shape of ZnS NCs in terms of nanodots, nanorods, and nanoplatelets (NPL) on the surface ligand density (LD) of the commonly used oleylamine (OLA) ligand by combining three experimental quantification techniques (e.g., thermogravimetric analysis-differential scanning calorimetry, 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry) with the semiempirical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Consistent results on the surface LD derived by the aforementioned three independent techniques were obtained, presenting an ascending order of LDdots < LDrods < LDNPLs. MD simulations reveal that the highest LD for ZnS NPLs can be attributed to their extremely flat and uniform surfaces with regular distribution of surface Zn atoms for the OLA molecules to achieve parallel and tight stacking, while for ZnS nanodots and nanorods, their surfaces may have staggered arrangement and multisteps, making it unlikely for the OLA ligand to adopt the tight ligand stacking mode. The finding revealed in this work not only sheds light on the constitution of the molecule ligand shell of NCs, which is helpful for their rational morphology control, but also provides an additional and important knob for tuning their chemical functionality. © 2024 American Chemical Society.

Citation Format(s)

Deciphering Surface Ligand Density of Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals: Shape Matters. / Chen, Wei; Xiao, Han; Zhang, Minyi et al.
In: Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol. 146, No. 42, 23.10.2024, p. 29104–29114.

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review