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Surface functionalization of silicon quantum dots for energy sustainable applications
Bell, Jacob P.
Bell, Jacob P.
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2014
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2014
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2015-05-01
Abstract
Silicon quantum dots (SiQDs) are an interesting material for many opto-electronic applications due to their size-tunable optical properties, nontoxicity, abundance, and potential integration into microelectronics. Since SiQDs are highly susceptible to oxidation, a protective passivation is crucial. To this end, halogen-terminated SiQDs can be functionalized with various reagents with desired anchoring atoms. This thesis focuses on two reaction schemes for halogenated SiQDs: direct colloidal synthesis of Cl-terminated SiQDs (Cl-SiQDs) and the indirect sol-gel synthesis of Cl- and Br-terminated SiQDs (Br-SiQDs). Colloidal Cl-SiQDs were functionalized by three distinct anchoring atoms (C, N, and O) and found to be significantly oxidized. Sol-gel SiQDs were chlorinated by phosphorus pentachloride and subsequently functionalized resulting in the partial passivation and aggregation of the particles. In contrast, N-Bromosuccinimide was an effective reagent to brominate SiQDs, the first demonstration to the best of our knowledge. The direct functionalization of sol-gel SiQDs by Lewis acid tris(pentafluorophenyl)boron resulted in a failure to passivated the particles due to steric hindrance.
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