Electron Spin Coherence in CdSe Nanocrystals in a Glass Matrix

The coherent spin dynamics of electrons in CdSe nanocrystals embedded in a glass matrix with diameters from 3.3 up to 6.1 nm are investigated by time-resolved Faraday ellipticity at room and cryogenic temperatures. Only one Larmor precession frequency is detected, which corresponds to the larger of the two precession frequencies and thus g-factor values found in the typical signal from solution-grown colloidal CdSe nanocrystals. We identify this frequency accordingly as associated with the spin precession of resident electrons localized in the nanocrystals in the vicinity of the surface. We provide a detailed theoretical analysis of the exciton level spin structure in the magnetic field and model the spin dynamics in CdSe nanocrystals of different symmetries. This allows us to exclude the exciton as the origin of the experimentally observed oscillating signal. At a cryogenic temperature of 6 K, an additional nonoscillating component emerges in the spin dynamics. We consider several possible origins of this signal and conclude that it is related to the hole spin polarization.

Electron and Hole g-Factors and Spin Dynamics of Negatively Charged Excitons in CdSe/CdS Colloidal Nanoplatelets with Thick Shells

We address spin properties and spin dynamics of carriers and charged excitons in CdSe/CdS colloidal nanoplatelets with thick shells. Magneto-optical studies are performed by time-resolved and polarization-resolved photoluminescence, spin-flip Raman scattering and picosecond pump-probe Faraday rotation in magnetic fields up to 30 T. We show that at low temperatures the nanoplatelets are negatively charged so that their photoluminescence is dominated by radiative recombination of negatively charged excitons (trions). Electron g-factor of 1.68 is measured, and heavy-hole g-factor varying with increasing magnetic field from -0.4 to -0.7 is evaluated. Hole g-factors for two-dimensional structures are calculated for various hole confining potentials for cubic- and wurtzite lattice in CdSe core. These calculations are extended for various quantum dots and nanoplatelets based on II-VI semiconductors. We developed a magneto-optical technique for the quantitative evaluation of the nanoplatelets orientation in ensemble.