Electrostatic Force Microscopy Study of Single Au−CdSe Hybrid Nanodumbbells: Evidence for Light-Induced Charge Separation

Abstract

Electrostatic force microscopy is used to study light-induced charging in single hybrid Au-CdSe nanodumbbells. Upon illumination, nanodumbbells show negative charging, which is in contrast with CdSe rods and Au particles that show positive charging. This different behavior is attributed to charge separation in the nanodumbbells, where after excitation the electron is transferred to the gold tips and the hole is subsequently filled through tunneling interactions with the substrate. The process of light-induced charge separation at the metal-semiconductor interface is key for the photocatalytic activity of such hybrid metal-semiconductor nanostructures.

Spectroscopic laser parameters of Ag/CdTe nanostructure

“…[12][13] The presence of the metal-semiconductor interface can enhance light absorption and promote effective charge separation in the semiconductor and improve overall carrier transfer, which can increase the light-harvesting efficiency and improve photocatalysis. [1,8,14] It is worth to mention that the important of this study has been addressed clearly by E. Margapoti et. al [15] .…”

“…[1][2][3] Understanding metal-semiconductor interactions and how they depend on particle size, shape, composition, and the space between the metallic and semiconductor segments is crucial for a variety of applications ranging from photocatalysis, [4][5] optoelectronics, [6][7] and photovoltaics [8][9][10][11] to biological labeling and nanomedicine. [12][13] The presence of the metal-semiconductor interface can enhance light absorption and promote effective charge separation in the semiconductor and improve overall carrier transfer, which can increase the light-harvesting efficiency and improve photocatalysis.…”

Au-Edged CuZnSe2Heterostructured Nanosheets with Enhanced Electrochemical Performance

“…Meanwhile, the heterostructures in return drive the electron displacement towards the Au domains. [ 49 ] The electron defi ciency of the CuZnSe 2 domains further increases the activity of the Cu (001) facets to combine with Se. Consequently, CuZnSe 2 sheet domains are obtained.…”

Surface‐Enhanced Raman Scattering‐Based Bioimaging

“…To date, most of the reported methods have used nucleic acid or other organic molecules as linkers, which lead to long separation distances and thus weak plasmon coupling [55,56]. Moreover, only simple clusters, such as dimers and trimers, have been efficiently synthesized [57,58]. Recently, the controlled assembly of gold nanospheres into well-defined nanoparticle clusters has been reported to indicate the outstanding optical performance and therefore ultrasensitive SERS-based detection-capability [59].…”