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Quantitative evaluation of size selective precipitation of Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots by size distributions calculated from UV/Vis absorbance spectra

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Abstract

We demonstrate the quantitative evaluation of the sharp classification of manganese-doped zinc sulfide (ZnS:Mn) quantum dots by size selective precipitation. The particles were characterized by the direct conversion of absorbance spectra to particle size distributions (PSDs) and high-resolution transmission electron micrographs (HRTEM). Gradual addition of a poor solvent (2-propanol) to the aqueous colloid led to the flocculation of larger particles. Though the starting suspension after synthesis had an already narrow PSD between 1.5 and 3.2 nm, different particle size fractions were subsequently isolated by the careful adjustment of the good solvent/poor solvent ratio. Moreover, due to the fact that for the analysis of the classification results the size distributions were available, an in-depth understanding of the quality of the distinct classification steps could be achieved. From the PSDs of the feed, as well as the coarse and the fine fractions with their corresponding yields determined after each classification step, an optimum after the first addition of poor solvent was identified with a maximal separation sharpness κ as high as 0.75. Only by the quantitative evaluation of classification results leading to an in-depth understanding of the relevant driving forces, a future transfer of this lab scale post-processing to larger quantities will be possible.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the German Research Council (DFG) for their financial support (Projects PE427/18-3 within the priority program SPP 1273 and Leibniz program) and for support within the framework of its Excellence Initiative the Cluster of Excellence “Engineering of Advanced Materials” (www.eam.uni-erlangen.de) at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. This study was also supported by “Advanced Study for Integrated Particle Science and Technology”, Strategic Development of Research Infrastructure for Private Universities, #S0901039, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan. Furthermore, we thank Stefan Romeis and Claudia Eisermann for helpful discussion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Particle Technology, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Cauerstraße 4, 91058, Erlangen, Germany

    Doris Segets & Wolfgang Peukert

  2. Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Doshisha University, 1-3 Tatara Miyakodani Kyotanabe, Kyoto, 610-0321, Japan

    So Komada & Yasushige Mori

  3. Center for Nanoanalysis and Electron Microscopy, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Cauerstraße 6, 91058, Erlangen, Germany

    Benjamin Butz & Erdmann Spiecker

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  1. Doris Segets
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  2. So Komada
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  3. Benjamin Butz
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  4. Erdmann Spiecker
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  5. Yasushige Mori
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  6. Wolfgang Peukert
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Erdmann Spiecker, Yasushige Mori or Wolfgang Peukert.

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Doris Segets, So Komada: These authors contributed equally to this work.

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Segets, D., Komada, S., Butz, B. et al. Quantitative evaluation of size selective precipitation of Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots by size distributions calculated from UV/Vis absorbance spectra. J Nanopart Res 15, 1486 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-013-1486-8

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