Origin of Water-Stable CsPbX3 Quantum Dots Assisted by Zwitterionic Ligands and Sequential Strategies for Enhanced Luminescence Based on Crystal Evolution

Water stability is a crucial issue always addressed for commercial practical application of perovskite quantum dots (QDs). Recent advances in ligand engineering for in situ synthesis of water-stable perovskite QDs have attracted growing interest. However, the exact mechanism remains unclear. Here, the function of 4-bromobutyric acid (BBA) and oleylamine (OLA) is systematically studied in water-stable CsPbX3 (X = Br and I) QDs and confirms that the zwitterionic ligands generated in situ by BBA and OLA are anchored on the QDs surface, thus preventing water from penetrating into the QDs. Cs4PbBr6 intermediate crystal found in the crystal structure evolution process of CsPbX3 QD further reveals a complete crystallization process: PbX2 + CsX + Br- → Cs4PbBr6 crystals + X-→ CsPbX3 QDs + Br-. Furthermore, it is found that the solvent coordination of the precursor solution has a significant effect on the crystallinity of Cs4PbBr6 intermediate crystal, while the Rb+ doping can effectively passivate the surface defects of CsPbX3 QDs, thereby jointly achieving photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQY) of 94.6% for CsPbBr3 QDs (88.2% for CsPbI3 QDs). This work provides new insights and guiding ideas for the green synthesis of high-quality and water-stable perovskite QDs.

High-Brightness and Color-Tunable FAPbBr3 Perovskite Nanocrystals 2.0 Enable Ultrapure Green Luminescence for Achieving Recommendation 2020 Displays

To best catch human eyes in next-generation displays, the updated recommendation 2020 (Rec. 2020) standard has called for ultrapure green emitters to be qualified with a narrow emission of 525-535 nm with a full width at half-maximum (fwhm) below 25 nm. However, it is still challenging to find an emitter which can simultaneously cover these two criteria. Instead of traditional II-VI group semiconductor quantum dots, perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) can render versatile emitting tunability to allow them access to the Rec. 2020 standard. Herein, to realize the critical window of Rec. 2020, we have proposed a scalable, room temperature synthesis route of formamidinium lead bromide (FAPbBr₃) NCs using a sole ligand of sulfobetaine-18 (SBE-18). The as-synthesized FAPbBr₃ NCs exhibit an ideal emission at 534 nm with an ultranarrow fwhm of 20.5 nm and a high photoluminescence quantum yield of 90.6%, overwhelming the FAPbBr₃ nanoplates capped with oleic acid/oleylamine (OA/OAM). Introducing these high quality NCs into backlight displays, an ultrapure green backlight which covers ≈85.7% of the Rec. 2020 standard in the CIE 1931 color space is achieved, signifying the "greenest" backlight till now. Thus, we can foresee perovskite NCs as the most potential candidates for next-generation displays.

Acylsulfonamide-Functionalized Zwitterionic Gold Nanoparticles for Enhanced Cellular Uptake at Tumor pH

A nanoparticle design featuring pH-responsive alkoxyphenyl acylsulfonamide ligands is reported herein. As a result of ligand structure, this nanoparticle is neutral at pH 7.4, becoming positively charged at tumor pH (<6.5). The particle uptake and cytotoxicity increase over this pH range. This pH-controlled uptake and toxicity makes this particle a promising tool for tumor selective therapy.