Chemistry of Materials Highlights Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals

InfoMetricsFiguresRef. Chemistry of MaterialsVol 37/Issue 4Article This publication is free to access through this site. Learn More CiteCitationCitation and abstractCitation and referencesMore citation options ShareShare onFacebookX (Twitter)WeChatLinkedInRedditEmailJump toExpandCollapse EditorialFebruary 25, 2025Chemistry of Materials Highlights Colloidal Semiconductor NanocrystalsClick to copy article linkArticle link copied!Paul D. GoringPaul D. GoringMore by Paul D. Goringhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7826-8822Sara E. Skrabalak*Sara E. Skrabalak*Email: [email protected]More by Sara E. Skrabalakhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1873-100XOpen PDFChemistry of MaterialsCite this: Chem. Mater. 2025, 37, 4, 1335–1336Click to copy citationCitation copied!https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chemmater.5c00183https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.5c00183Published February 25, 2025 Publication History Received 24 January 2025Published online 25 February 2025Published in issue 25 February 2025editorialCopyright © Published 2025 by American Chemical Society. This publication is available under these Terms of Use. Request reuse permissionsThis publication is licensed for personal use by The American Chemical Society. ACS PublicationsCopyright © Published 2025 by American Chemical SocietySubjectswhat are subjectsArticle subjects are automatically applied from the ACS Subject Taxonomy and describe the scientific concepts and themes of the article.Biological imagingCrystalsLigandsMaterialsQuantum dotsColloidal semiconductor nanocrystals have been hailed as the building blocks of next-generation nanotechnology. These solution-processed nanocrystals exhibit size-tunable optical and electronic properties, making them valuable for applications ranging from high-performance quantum dot displays to advanced biomedical imaging and even in photovoltaics. Their ability to bridge the gap between molecular chemistry and solid-state physics is central to such innovation, with the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry recognizing the discovery and synthesis of quantum-confined colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals. Yet, as researchers push the frontiers of their potential, challenges persist that must be addressed to unlock their full potential in commercial and scientific pursuits.This Collection of recent papers on Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals from Chemistry of Materials includes an invited editorial by Raffaella Buonsanti and Brandi Cossairt (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.5c00023), where they ask: What is next? This collection is built from their insight, with papers selected that emphasize (1) Mechanistic Insight and Synthetic Design, (2) Stability and the Nanocrystal Surface, (3) New Materials and the Use of Less Toxic Elements, and (4) Translation from Fundamental Science to Application.The synthetic design of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals relies on precise control over nucleation and growth processes to achieve nanocrystals with uniform size, shape, and composition. This achievement provides nanocrystals with precisely tuned properties. Such nanocrystals are commonly prepared by the hot-injection method, with Kenis and co-workers (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c02751) providing insight into this method using an automated high-throughput experimental platform to collect a large experimental data set that could be used to train models for predicting synthetic outcomes using machine learning. This method focused on the widely studied CdSe system, which has also been advanced with the synthesis of CdSe-based heterostructures. These heterostructures include CdSe-Dot/CdS-Rod/PbS-Dot nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c02553) that are dual-emissive as well as CdSe/ZnSe Core/Shell and CdSe/ZnSe/ZnS Core/Shell/Shell nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c01333), where the latter quantum dots are green-emitting with a near-unity photoluminescence quantum yield. Heterostructured nanocrystals can be achieved through seeded methods as well as through chemical transformations, such as cation exchange, which in addition to producing the dual-emissive CdS-Rod system, was used to synthesize ZnSe-Dot/CdS-Rod nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03278) as well as wurtzite InP nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c02226) from Cu3–xP nanocrystals. Mechanistic studies that reveal the intricacies of colloidal chemistry are central to achieving such structurally complex semiconductor nanocrystals, with advances also reported for highly luminescent In(Zn)P/ZnSe/ZnS quantum dots (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c01359), Ag2Te quantum dots (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00026), two-dimensional PbTe nanoplatelets (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00939), Ag–In–Ga–S quantum dots (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03023), and CsPbBr3 perovskite quantum dots (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00160). Such mechanistic studies also highlight the role of ligands in modulating the nucleation and growth of quantum dots, as studied recently for InP quantum dots (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c01309). These ligands also impact the ability to deposit high-quality shells on nanocrystals, with a new method for shelling ultrasmall PbS nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c01814) with metal-halide-perovskite-like monolayers also reported.Even with the best syntheses of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals, their utility depends on their stability, where degradation mechanisms that include oxidation, defect generation (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00602), ligand desorption, and photobleaching can compromise their optical and electronic properties. The need for stable semiconductor nanocrystals has led to studies of the chemical instability of nanocrystals, including CsPbBr3 nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c02018) where Jiang and co-workers reported their transformation to Cs4PbBr6 nanocrystals being driven by the precursors used in the synthesis. Excellent perspectives by Jonathan De Roo (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c00638) on the surface chemistry of colloidal nanocrystals and by Emily Tsui and her students (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c00481) on the redox reactions at colloidal semiconductor nanocrystal surfaces provide insights into the complexity of nanocrystal surfaces (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00492) and their characterization. Chemical knowledge of the surface and the thermodynamics of ligand exchange (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c02651) are central to effective surface passivation, whether it is with organozinc halide ligands (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c02461) in the case of ZnSeTe/ZnSe/ZnSeS/ZnS core/shell quantum dots or primary amines (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c01287) in the case of PbS nanocrystals.The development of less toxic colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals is a growing priority to mitigate environmental and health concerns associated with traditional heavy-metal-based systems. Researchers are exploring alternative compositions such as InP (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c02960), AgInS2 (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00263), and lead-free halide perovskites (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c03186). Again, synthesis plays an important role, where cation exchange of InP can provide access to coinage metal phosphide nanocrystals (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c03258). Also, understanding of the surface chemistry for these compositions is critically important with a comprehensive review of the InP nanocrystal system provided by Sophia Click and Sandra Rosenthal (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03074).The translation of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals from laboratory research to real-world applications hinges on addressing these challenges in synthesis, stability, and toxicity but also on their ability to integrate with existing technologies such as solar cells (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03357), light-emitting diodes (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c00011), near-infrared devices (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.4c01619), bioimaging, and optical communication (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c01076). Compatibility with other device components, for example hole transport materials (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c00561), becomes important to such integration. At the same time, new opportunities for applications arise from considering the unique qualities of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals. For example, coating colloidal CsPbX3 nanocrystals with thin metal oxide coatings (DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c03562) makes the photoexcited carriers in these nanocrystals more accessible and is anticipated to be useful in applications where carrier extraction or delocalization are important.Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals will continue to push the boundaries of nanoscience, offering excellent control over optical and electronic properties for applications in displays, photovoltaics, and bioimaging, to name a few critical areas. Environmental and health concerns are anticipated to drive the development of heavy-metal free alternatives, which will be propelled by synthetic and physical insights. With new materials, the commercial impact of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals will only grow, with these nanomaterials poised to shape the next generation of technologies. We hope our readers enjoy browsing this Collection, and we encourage authors to consider Chemistry of Materials as a potential venue for their high-quality research in this dynamic and exciting field.Author InformationClick to copy section linkSection link copied!Corresponding AuthorSara E. Skrabalak, Editor-in-Chief, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1873-100X, Email: [email protected]AuthorPaul D. Goring, Managing Editor, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7826-8822NotesViews expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.Cited By Click to copy section linkSection link copied!This article has not yet been cited by other publications.Download PDFFiguresReferences Get e-AlertsGet e-AlertsChemistry of MaterialsCite this: Chem. Mater. 2025, 37, 4, 1335–1336Click to copy citationCitation copied!https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.5c00183Published February 25, 2025 Publication History Received 24 January 2025Published online 25 February 2025Published in issue 25 February 2025Copyright © Published 2025 by American Chemical Society. This publication is available under these Terms of Use. Request reuse permissionsArticle Views-Altmetric-Citations-Learn about these metrics closeArticle Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. 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