title: Intense visible emission from ZnO/PAAX (X = H or Na) nanocomposite synthesized via a simple and scalable sol-gel method.
abstract: Intense visible nano-emitters are key objects for many technologies such as single photon source, bio-labels or energy convertors. Chalcogenide nanocrystals have ruled this domain for several decades. However, there is a demand for cheaper and less toxic materials. In this scheme, ZnO nanoparticles have appeared as potential candidates. At the nanoscale, they exhibit crystalline defects which can generate intense visible emission. However, even though photoluminescence quantum yields as high as 60% have been reported, it still remains to get quantum yield of that order of magnitude which remains stable over a long period. In this purpose, we present hybrid ZnO/polyacrylic acid (PAAH) nanocomposites, obtained from the hydrolysis of diethylzinc in presence of PAAH, exhibiting quantum yield systematically larger than 20%. By optimizing the nature and properties of the polymeric acid, the quantum yield is increased up to 70% and remains stable over months. This enhancement is explained by a model based on the hybrid type II heterostructure formed by ZnO/PAAH. The addition of PAAX (X = H or Na) during the hydrolysis of ZnEt2 represents a cost effective method to synthesize scalable amounts of highly luminescent ZnO/PAAX nanocomposites.
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and INL, CNRS, UMR 5270, INSA Lyon F-69621 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and INL, CNRS, UMR 5270, INSA Lyon F-69621 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Apostoluk
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and IRCE Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5256 F-69626 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gautier
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and IRCE Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5256 F-69626 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Valette
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and IRCE Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5256 F-69626 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Omar
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and IRCE Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5256 F-69626 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Cornier
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and INL, CNRS, UMR 5270, INSA Lyon F-69621 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bluet
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and MATEIS, CNRS, UMR 5510, INSA Lyon F-69621 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Masenelli-Varlot
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and IRCE Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5256 F-69626 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Daniele
authors.affiliation: Université de Lyon, F-69000 Lyon, France and INL, CNRS, UMR 5270, INSA Lyon F-69621 Villeurbanne, France.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Masenelli