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Tunable ultraviolet to deep blue light emission from sulfur nanodots fabricated by a controllable fission-aggregation strategy

通过可控的裂变-聚合策略合成紫外光到蓝光发射的 硫纳米点

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Abstract

Bright tunable light emission in the short wavelength range from sulfur nanodots was demonstrated with a photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of up to 59.4%. A fission-aggregation mechanism was proposed for the formation of sulfur nanodots with desired performances. This synthetic strategy allowed for simultaneous size control from 3.2 to 5.6 nm, thus tuning the emission color from ultraviolet (UV) to deep blue (342–430 nm), and for the suppression of unwanted nonradiative recombination centers and deep level emission. The luminescence mechanism and quantum confinement effect of the synthesized sulfur nanodots were investigated by optical spectroscopy and theoretical calculations. These results show promise toward the application of sulfur nanodots in UV optoelectronics, biomedical treatments, and sterilization.

摘要

本文通过可控的裂变-聚合策略合成紫外光到蓝光发射的硫纳米 点, 实现了在短波长范围内的荧光发射, 其最高的荧光量子产率可达 59.4%. 由于其独特的裂变-聚合生成机理, 这种合成方法能控制硫纳米 点的尺寸(3.2–5.6 nm), 因此可实现从紫外到深蓝色(342–430 nm)可调 谐发光, 并抑制非辐射复合中心的生成以及深能级发射. 通过光谱表征 和理论计算探究了硫纳米点的发光机理和量子限域效应. 研究结果表 明了硫纳米点在紫外光电子学、生物医学治疗和杀菌等应用领域的可 能性.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by A*STAR (AME-IRG-A20E5c0083) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52006005).

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Physics and Applied Physics, School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 637371, Singapore

    Lian **ao  (肖炼), Shijia Cheng  (程士嘉) & Handong Sun  (孙汉东)

  2. Division of Chemistry and Biological Chemistry, School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 637371, Singapore

    Quanchao Du  (杜全超) & Edwin Kok Lee Yeow

  3. Research Institute of Aero-Engine, Beihang University, Bei**g, 100083, China

    Yi Huang  (黄毅)

  4. School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 639798, Singapore

    Shuai Yin  (尹帅) & Teck Neng Wong

  5. MajuLab, International Joint Research Unit UMI 3654, CNRS, Université Côte d’Azur, Sorbonne Université, National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 637371, Singapore

    Handong Sun  (孙汉东)

Authors
  1. Lian **ao  (肖炼)
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  2. Quanchao Du  (杜全超)
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  3. Yi Huang  (黄毅)
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  4. Shijia Cheng  (程士嘉)
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  5. Shuai Yin  (尹帅)
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  7. Edwin Kok Lee Yeow
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  8. Handong Sun  (孙汉东)
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Contributions

Sun H initialized this research. **ao L designed the experiments. **ao L, Du Q and Yeow EKL conducted the optical characterizations. **ao L and Cheng S performed the XRD measurement. **ao L, Huang Y, Yin S and Wong TN did the theoretical calculation. Sun H and **ao L analyzed the data. **ao L drafted the manuscript. Sun H supervised this work and revised the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Lian **ao  (肖炼) or Handong Sun  (孙汉东).

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Supplementary information

Experimental details and supporting data are available in the online version of the paper.

Lian **ao received his bachelor’s degree in physics from Sichuan University and PhD degree in physics from Nanyang Technological University. He is currently a research fellow at the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. His research interests include nanomaterials, bio-applications, optical spectroscopy, semiconductor physics, and microfluidics.

Handong Sun is currently a full professor at the School of Physical and Mathematical Science, Nanyang Technological University. He received his bachelor’s degree in physics from Dalian University of Technology, and his master’s and PhD degrees from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, respectively. He was elected as a fellow of the American Physical Society in 2016. His research interests cover optoelectronic materials and devices, semiconductor physics, optical spectroscopy, nanomaterials, and applications in microfluidics.

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40843_2022_2041_MOESM1_ESM.pdf

Tunable Ultraviolet to Deep Blue Light Emission from Sulfur Nanodots Fabricated by a Controllable Fission—Aggregation Strategy

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**ao, L., Du, Q., Huang, Y. et al. Tunable ultraviolet to deep blue light emission from sulfur nanodots fabricated by a controllable fission-aggregation strategy. Sci. China Mater. 65, 2786–2792 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-022-2041-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-022-2041-9

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