Reversible Electrochemical Control over Photoexcited Luminescence of Core/Shell CdSe/ZnS Quantum Dot Film

Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) are widely used in light-emitting diodes and solar cells. Electrochemical modulation is a good way to understand the electrical and optical properties of QDs. In this work, the effects of electrochemical control on photoluminescence (PL) spectra in core/shell CdSe/ZnS QD films are studied. The results show different spectral responses for surface emission and core emission when a negative electrochemical potential is applied: the core emission is redshifted while the surface emission is blueshifted. The former is attributed to the electrostatic expansion of the excitonic wave function, due to the asymmetric distribution of adsorbed cations on the surface of the dots. The latter is attributed to the occupation of lower surface states by the injected electrons, i.e., the photoexcited electrons are more likely to be trapped onto higher surface states, leading to a blueshift of the surface emission. Both the spectral shift and the accompanying PL-quenching processes are reversible by resetting the potential.