Well-resolved oil-soluble Au-doped ZnCdS quantum dots and enhancing doping emission with In-codoping

Highly emissive semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) with tunable color are valuable in many applications such as solid state lighting and bio-imaging. Herein, we report a facile synthetic method to Au:ZnCdS and Au:ZnCdS/ZnS core/shell QDs with tunable emission color. The highly active Au precursor (HAuCl₄) is prevented to be decomposed at high reaction temperature using 1-dodecanethiol (DDT) as the surface ligand. High-quality Au:ZnCdS/ZnS core/shell QDs are prepared and the highest photoluminescence (PL) quantum yield (QY) can achieve 42% by overcoating of ZnS layer over the bare Au:ZnCdS core QDs. Furthermore, through using Au⁺ ion as the primary dopants and trivalent cation In³⁺ as co-dopants, the PL QY can be enhanced significantly because compensation of In³⁺ ion-codoping for the charge imbalance from Au⁺-doping. This codoping strategy may be applied to other related optical materials to control the optical properties based on our understanding for physical mechanism. - Highlights: • High-quality oil-soluble Au:ZnCdS/ZnS QDs were prepared for the first time. • The highly active HAuCl4 is prevented to decompose by using 1-dodecanethiol. • The highest PL QY of Au:ZnCdS/ZnS QDs can achieve 42% by overcoating ZnS layer. • The PL QY of QDs can be significantly enhanced by Au⁺, In³⁺-codoping.