Quantum dots (QDs)
are semiconducting nanocrystals that exhibit
size- and composition-dependent optical and electronic properties.
Recently, Cu-based II–VI ternary Cu
x
Cd
1–
x
S (CCS) QDs have emerged
as a promising class of QDs as compared to their binary counterparts
(CuS and CdS). Herein, a series of ternary CCS QDs are synthesized
by changing the molar concentration of Cu
2+
ions only keeping
the 1:1 ratio of the stoichiometric mixture of Cd
2+
and
S
2–
. These CCS QDs are attached to 2-phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulfonic
acid (PBSA), an eminent UV-B filter widely used in many commercial
sunscreen products to avoid skin erythema and DNA mutagenic photolesions.
The photoinduced Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) is
investigated from PBSA to CCS QDs as a function of Cu concentration
in CCS QDs using the steady-state photoluminescence and time-resolved
photoluminescence measurements. A 2-fold increase in the magnitude
of non-radiative energy transfer rate (
K
T
(
r
)
) is observed as the molar concentration
of Cu in CCS QDs increases from 2 to 10 mM. Our findings suggest that
in PBSA-CCS QD dyads, the FRET occurrence from PBSA to QDs is dictated
by the dynamic mode of photoluminescence (PL) quenching. The bimolecular
PL quenching rate constants (
k
q
) estimated
by Stern–Volmer’s plots for PBSA-CCS QD dyads are of
the order of 10
10
M
–1
s
–1
, which signifies that in the PBSA-CCS QD dyad FRET system, the process
of PL quenching is entirely diffusion-controlled.