Semiconductor

Nanocrystals:
Proper5es, Band diagram
& Applica5ons

-Jay Kalinani
14SHPI074003

1
Faculty of Science and Humani>es

M. S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences

Contents
1.Introduc>on
2.Op>cal Proper>es
3.Materials used for Nanocrystals
4.Bandgap Engineering
5.References

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M. S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences

Introduc5on
Nanocrystal: A material par>cle having at least one dimension in the
order of nanometers, and composed of atoms in a crystalline
arrangement
Semiconductor nanocrystals having dimensions less than 10nm are
also described as quantum dots

Op>cal absorp>on in crystalline semiconductors can create an
exciton, which is an electron and hole pair excited by a photon and
bound together through their aQrac>ve Coulomb interac>on.



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 Semi-conductor nanocrystals (NCs) are made from a variety

of dierent compounds. Based on periodic table groups:
Group IV: Si, Ge
Group III-V: GaN, GaP,GaAs, InP, InAs
Group II-VI: ZnO, ZnS, CdSe, CdTe
Size dependency on band-gap
The band gap of CdSe nanocrystals conned in three
dimensions (quantum dots), two dimensions (quantum wires
or rods), or one dimension (quantum wells or disks)

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Fig. 1

Fig. 2
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Op5cal Proper5es
1. On/O Blinking:
Emission from single quantum dots is intermiQent (blinking).
Arises as a result of repeated ioniza>on due to Auger process or
trapping of charge carrier near surface.
To avoid the eect: growing insula>ng shell around the
nanocrystal; having smooth composi>on gradient from core to
shell

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2. Phonon Assisted relaxa5on & Carrier mul5plica5on:

Electrons excited to energies greater than the band edge eciently relax to
the band edge through the release of phonons, or quanta of labce vibra>on
Alterna>vely, excited state electrons with kine>c energy greater than the band
gap can transfer their energy to a second electron via impact ioniza>on,
yielding two excitons

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University
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and Humani>es

M. S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences

Materials used for Nanocrystals

1. Cadmium Selenide (CdSe):

Inorganic compound that is classied as II-VI semiconductor of n-type

Three cystalline forms: wurtzite, sphalerite, rock-salt
CdSe derived nanopar>cle with sizes below 10 nm exhibit a property known
as quantum connement. These nanopar>cles are tunable.
Discre>za>on of energy states results in electronic transi>ons that vary by
quantum dot size
CdSe quantum dots have been implemented in a wide range of
applica>ons including photodetector, solar cells, LEDs & biouorescent
tagging. They also have poten>al uses is biomedical imaging

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2. Gallium Arsenide

Compound of elements Gallium & Arsenic
It is a III-V direct bandgap semiconductor with a zince blende crystal structure
Rela>vely higher electron mobility & insensi>vity to overhea>ng; create less noise
than Si devices
Chemical Proper>es:

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 Physical Proper>es:

Applica>ons:

In manufacture of devices such as microwave frequency ICs, infrared LEDs,
photodiodes, laser diodes, solar cells, etc.

Also used as a substrate material for growing of other III-V semiconductors like
InGaAs, AlGaAs, etc.

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 In the graph shown, we can see

that some valleys are narrow and
some are sharply curved.
These curves and narrows dier
corresponding to the electrons
with low eec>ve mass state,
while valleys that are wide with
g e n t l e c u r v a t u r e a r e
characterized by larger eec>ve
masses.

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Bandgap Engineering
In comparison with bulk semiconductors, nanocrystals have a diverse and
growing range of parameters that can modulate their electronic band
gaps including size, shape, and composi>on.
Quantum connement can shij the band gap of most semiconductors by
over 1eV, giving enormous range of con>nuous tunability through size
and shape for a single material composi>on.
Use of quantum-conned structures allows independent tuning of size &
band gap using materials such as CdSeyTe1- y, & CdxZn1-xS.
Doped nanocrystals can have interes>ng proper>es for biolabeling and
device applica>ons, such as large Stokes shijs, paramagne>c proper>es,
and improved lasing.


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M. S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences

References
ANDREEV A. (2014) Theory of Semiconductor Quantum Dots: Band Structure,
Optical Properties and Applications, 1st Edition, World Scientific Publishing
Company, pp. 112-134.
CHM.BRIS.AC.UK (n.d.) What Makes Nanoparticles Different? [Online] Available
from: http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/webprojects2002/etan/Webpages/theory.htm
INFLIBNET.AC.IN (n.d.) Chapter 1: Semiconductor Quantum Dots and Its Band
Structure Parameters: An Introduction [Online] Available from: http://
shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in:8080/jspui/bitstream/10603/3281/8/08_chapter%201.pdf
SMITH A. and NIE S. (2010) Semiconductor Nanocrystals: Structure, Properties and
Band gap engineering [Online] Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/
articles/PMC2858563/
SURESH S. (2013) Semiconductor Nanomaterials, Methods and Applications
[Online] Available from: http://article.sapub.org/10.5923.j.nn.20130303.06.html
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