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Synthesis and characterization of colloidal ZnTe/ZnS quantum dots

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

Abstract

Colloidal quantum dots (QDs) emitting in the visible spectrum are of interest for many biomedical applications, including bioimaging, biosensing, drug delivery, and photodynamic therapy. However, a significant limitation is that QDs typically contain cadmium, which is highly cytotoxic and makes prospects for their FDA approval for human treatment very unlikely. Previous work on biocompatible QDs has focused on indium phosphide and zinc oxide as alternative materials for QDs. However, these nanoparticles have also been shown to be cytotoxic. High-efficiency luminescent ZnTe-based QDs could be a reasonable alternative to Cd-containing QDs. We started our recent studies of ZnTe core, zinc chalcogenide shell QDs with synthesis, structural characterization, and investigation of optical properties of ZnTe/ZnSe colloidal QDs that displayed a blue-green photoluminescence under UV excitation. In this paper, the characteristics of ZnTe/ZnS QDs are compared to those of ZnTe/ZnSe QDs. We conclude that ZnTe/ZnS QDs are appealing candidates for various biomedical applications instead of the currently prominent alternative: cadmium-chalcogenide core QDs.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationColloidal Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications XIV
EditorsMarek Osinski, Wolfgang J. Parak
PublisherUnknown Publisher
ISBN (Electronic)9781510624269
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 2019
EventColloidal Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications XIV 2019 -
Duration: Jan 1 2019 → …

Publication series

NameProgress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE
Volume10892
ISSN (Print)1605-7422

Conference

ConferenceColloidal Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications XIV 2019
Period01/1/19 → …

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