The tremendous recent progress in the methods for preparing thin films of semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) has led to a flurry of research employing NC films as the photoactive layer in solar photoconversion, photodetectors, LEDs, and related technologies. The majority of the research has focused on metal chalcogenide NCs owing to the ease of both synthesizing these ionic materials and performing ligand exchange reactions at the NC surface. Our group and others have been exploring methods for preparing group 14 NCs (e.g., Si, Ge) as potential earth abundant and nontoxic infrared absorbing and emitting alternatives to metal chalcogenide or pnictide quantum dots. We will discuss our recent studies on the synthesis of group 14 NCs from both colloidal and vapor-phase routes, and in particular our efforts to identify and passivate defect species resulting from growth processes that impact their fundamental photophysics.

Surface passivation of group 14 nanocrystals

249th National Meeting (2015)

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