Quantum dots (QDs) conjugated to electron acceptor ligands are useful as redox sensors in applications ranging from chemical detection to bioimaging. We aimed to improve effectiveness of these redox-sensing QD conjugates, which depends on the initial charge separation and on the competing mechanisms of recombination, including luminescence and electron transfer to the conjugated redox molecules. In this study, ultrafast laser measurements were used to study the excited state dynamics in CdTe/CdS core/shell QDs with quinone/quinol acceptor (Q2NS) ligands attached to the surface (up to 40 per QD). Detailed analysis, along with computational modelling of the system, showed multiple electron transfer pathways and identified an ultrafast electron transfer from a surface electron trap state to the quinone ligands (2-8 ps). We propose that this leads to high, redox-dependent, quenching efficiencies (98.7% with an average of 10 quinone/quinols on the surface). As only low populations of redox ligands are required, the colloidal properties of the QD are preserved, which allows for further functionalisation. These new insights into the excited state properties and ultra-fast charge transfer has important implications for fields exploring charge extraction from quantum dots, which range from bioimaging to solar energy technology.

We report an automated device for the efficient microscale separation of immiscible liquids.

We describe a high resolution laser polarimeter built from commodity optical components. the optical rotation angle is determined by measuring the phase difference between two harmonically modulated polarised laser beams-an 'object beam' that passes through the sample under test and a 'reference beam' that bypasses the sample. The complete polarimeter may be assembled from low cost off-the-shelf parts for less than £300 (UK Sterling). Data acquisition and analysis are carried out on a microcontroller running an efficient algorithm based on the sliding Discrete Fourier Transform. Despite its low cost, the polarimeter is a fully automatic, research-grade instrument with an accuracy of ±0.0013° and a precision of ±0.0028°-comparable to far costlier commercial instruments. The polarimeter's ease of use, compact size, fast measurement times and high angular resolution make it a capable and versatile tool for analytical science, while its low cost means it is ideally suited for use in resource-constrained environments and process monitoring. the polarimeter is released here as open hardware, with technical diagrams, a full parts list, and source code for its firmware included as Supplementary information. The tremendous advances in electronic hardware over recent decades have led to substantial improvements in the speed, accuracy, precision and functionality of scientific instrumentation. The electromechanical automation of intricate physical and chemical procedures, the development of brighter and more stable light-sources, the proliferation of low-noise sensors, improvements in amplifier technology, and the availability of better signal processing and data analysis techniques (to name but a few) have all contributed positively to analytical performance. Taking the subject of this manuscript-polarimetry-as an example, virtually all polarimeters in the early 1960s were manually operated instruments with hand-rotated analysers and telescopic eye-pieces that relied on human judgement to determine the angle of rotation. Today, they are motorised instruments with integrated photodetectors that automatically measure optical rotation angles at the push of a button. However, while functionality has improved tremendously over the past fifty years, equipment costs have changed very little: in 1965, a manually

Combining abiotic photosensitisers such as quantum dots (QDs) with non-photosynthetic bacteria presents an intriguing concept into the design of artificial photosynthetic organisms and solar-driven fuel production. Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 (MR-1) is a versatile bacterium concerning respiration, metabolism and biocatalysis, and is a promising organism for artificial photosynthesis as the bacterium’s synthetic and catalytic ability provides a potential system for bacterial biohydrogen production. MR-1’s hydrogenases are present in the periplasmatic space. It follows that for photoenergised electrons to reach these enzymes, QDs will need to be able to enter the periplasm, or electrons need to enter the periplasm via the Mtr pathway that is responsible for MR-1’s extracellular electron transfer ability. As a step towards this goal, various QDs were tested for their photo-reducing potential, nanotoxicology and further for their interaction with MR-1. CdTe/CdS/TGA, CdTe/CdS/Cysteamine, a commercial, negatively charged CdTe and CuInS2/ZnS/PMAL QDs were examined. The photoreduction potential of the QDs was confirmed by measuring their ability to photoreduce methyl viologen with different sacrificial electron donors. The commercial CdTe and CuInS2/ZnS/PMAL QDs showed no toxicity towards MR-1 as evaluated by a colony-forming units method and a fluorescence viability assay. Only the commercial negatively charged CdTe QDs showed good interaction with MR-1. With transmission electron microscopy, QDs were observed both in the cytoplasm and periplasm. These results inform on the possibilities and bottlenecks when developing bionanotechnological systems for the photosynthetic production of biohydrogen by MR-1.