title: Infrared-emitting colloidal nanocrystals: synthesis, assembly, spectroscopy, and applications.
abstract: Semiconductor nanocrystals produced by means of colloidal chemistry in a solvent medium are an attractive class of nanometer-sized building blocks from which to create complex materials with unique properties for a variety of applications. Their optical and electronic properties can be tailored easily, both by their chemical composition and particle size. While colloidal nanocrystals emitting in the infrared region have seen a burst of attention during the last decade there is clearly a paucity of review articles covering their synthesis, assembly, spectroscopic characterization, and applications. This Review comprehensively addresses these topics for II-VI, III-V, and IV-VI nanocrystals, examples being HgTe and Cd(x)Hg(1-) (x)Te, InP and InAs, and PbS, PbSe, and PbTe, respectively. Among the applications discussed here are optical amplifier media for telecommunications systems, electroluminescence devices, and noninvasive optical imaging in biology.
authors.affiliation: Photonics and Optoelectronics Group, Physics Department and Centre for NanoScience (CeNS), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany. andrey.rogach@physik.uni-muenchen.de
authors.forename: Andrey L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Rogach
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eychmüller
authors.forename: Stephen G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Hickey
authors.forename: Stephen V
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Kershaw
mesh_terms: D003102:Colloids / Q000737:chemistry*; D004553:Electric Conductivity; D004563:Electrochemistry / Q000379:methods; D007259:Infrared Rays; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods; D011108:Polymers; D012666:Semiconductors; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012997:Solvents; D013055:Spectrophotometry, Infrared / Q000379:methods; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D003102:Colloids; D011108:Polymers; D012997:Solvents