Materials Chemistry and Physics, Vol.147, No.3, 514-520, 2014
Energy transfer between lead sulfide quantum dots in the liquid phase
Forster resonant energy transfer (FRET) from smaller sized PbS Quantum Dots (QDs) to larger sized ones occurs in the liquid phase when adjacent QDs are brought in close proximity by the bridging action of the two SH groups in aromatic or aliphatic dithiols. Signatures of FRET were observed by the lowering of the fluorescence peak corresponding to the smaller particle group and intensification of the peak corresponding to the larger particle group in a mixture of the two in the liquid phase. The suspensions of the two QDs size distributions were mixed in a ratio such that total surface area of the smaller QDs was equal to that of the larger QDs. A 10-13% size deviation in each PbS QDs group also allows this phenomenon to be observed in these samples and is manifested by red-shift and broadening of the fluorescence peak. The ratio of the absorption peak intensity corresponding to the two groups of PbS QDs in the mixture remains the same. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.