CdSe quantum dots synthesized by laser ablation in water and their photovoltaic applications

CdSe quantum dots (QDs) have been prepared by a facile and clean synthesis method-laser ablation in water. The structural and luminescent properties of the CdSe QDs have been investigated. The CdSe QDs of wurtzite crystal structure have an average particle size of about 5 nm. The QDs can be attached to ZnO nanowires making them ideal for applications in QD-sensitized nanowire solar cells. A uniqueness of the QDs attached to the ZnO nanowires by this laser ablation method is that they do not contain ligands, and the preparation avoids the complicated process of ligand exchange. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4768706]