Biofunctionalization of silica-coated CdTe and gold nanocrystals

This contribution reports the synthesis of water-soluble silica-coated CdTe nanocrystals that possess an ideally designed ligand shell with respect to colloidal properties and surface coupling reactions. We describe conjugation strategies for the modification of the fluorescent biocompatible nanocrystals with biomolecules that provide a molecular recognition potential like the biotin/avidin couple and DNA.