Publications Repository - Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf

Ternary and quaternary colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) based on I−III−VI group semiconductors are promising low-toxic luminescent materials attracting huge interest as alternatives to cadmium- and lead-chalcogenide-based NCs. Despite significant progress in the synthesis of three-dimensionally confined quantum dots based on I−III−VI semiconductors with intensive photoluminescence (PL) in a broad spectral range, all attempts to prepare one-dimensionally confined nanoplatelets (NPLs) or nanosheets have resulted in rather nonemitting two-dimensional (2D) NCs. Since 2D NCs of the II−VI group exhibit unique anisotropic optical properties, exploring synthetic strategies to obtain 2D I−III−VI-based NPLs might also reveal interesting optical and electronic features. In this work, we demonstrate the synthesis of luminescent In-rich Cu−Zn−In−S (CZIS) NPLs using a one-pot approach. The synthesis includes the formation of
Cu−In−S NPLs from In₂S₃ seeds, followed by the incorporation of zinc to form quaternary NPLs with improved stability and optical properties. The synthetic strategy implemented results in the formation of ∼1 nm thick NPLs with lateral sizes of ∼30 × 10 nm² and a tetragonal crystal structure. As-synthesized NPLs are stable at ambient conditions and demonstrate PL in the range of 700−800 nm with a large Stokes shift. An additional shell of ZnS grown on CZIS NPLs resulted in the enhancement of their PL quantum yield reaching 29%.