Kumar, Umesh and Kumari, Kusum and Sharma, Shailesh N. and Kumar, Mahesh and Vankar, V. D. and Kakkar , Rita and Kumar, Vikram (2010) Role of surface modification of colloidal CdSe quantum dots on the properties of hybrid organic–inorganic nanocomposites. Colloid and Polymer Science, 288 (8). pp. 841-849. ISSN 1435-1536

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Abstract

In this work, tri-octyl phosphine/tri-octyl phosphine oxide (TOPO)-capped cadmium selenide (CdSe) quantum dots (QDs) of varied sizes (5–9 nm), prepared by varying the input Cd:Se precursor ratio using chemical route, were dispersed in conducting polymer matrices viz. poly[2- methoxy, 5-(2-ethyl-hexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene vinylene] (MEH-PPV) and poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT). By using a binary solvent mixture (pyridine–chloroform), homogeneous dispersion of CdSe nanocrystals in polymers (MEHPPV, P3HT) could be realized. The properties of the resulting dispersions could be tailored by the composition and concentration of QDs in polymer. The emission and structural properties of polymer–CdSe nanocomposites are found to be dependent on the crystallite size and morphology of CdSe nanocrystallites. An effective quenching of photoluminescence emission in the polymer nanocomposite was observed for smaller CdSe quantum dots (size ∼6 nm) as compared to larger CdSe quantum dots (size ∼9 nm), thus ensuring efficient charge transfer process across the polymer–CdSe interface in the former case. The incomplete quenching, particularly for MEH-PPV:CdSe anocomponanocomposites, could be as a result of insufficient coverage of polymers on the surface of CdSe nanocrystallites, mainly due to phase segregation for TOPO-stripped CdSe nanocrystallites. The superior morphology and optical properties of polymer nanocomposite (P3HT:CdSe QDs) could play a pivotal role for the realization of effective charge separation and transport in hybrid solar cells.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Copyright for this article belongs to M/s Springer Verlag
Subjects:	Chemistry Polymer Science
Divisions:	UNSPECIFIED
Depositing User:	Ms Neetu Chandra
Date Deposited:	06 Jul 2012 11:46
Last Modified:	06 Jul 2012 11:46
URI:	http://npl.csircentral.net/id/eprint/298

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