An
experimental-theoretical approach is proposed to investigate
the size-dependent photobleaching of colloidal semiconductor quantum
dots (QDs) excited by a nanosecond pulsed laser. In the experimental
background, the ground-state absorption and photoluminescence (PL)
spectra of chemically prepared QDs are monitored over an excitation
time at distinct laser irradiances. The magnitude of photobleaching
in the QD solution is quantified by the decay rate of the PL signal
as a function of the excitation time and the laser power. A theoretical
spectroscopy model is then used to estimate the particle size distribution
(PSD) in colloidal solution from the absorption data generated at
different laser powers. The resulting evolution of the PSD of the
QD ensemble under irradiation is analyzed in terms of classical crystallization
theories dealing with the formation, growth, and dissolution of colloidal
particles in a supersaturated medium. The QD response to laser irradiation
is also interpreted by a simple mechanical model that correlates the
photoinduced hydrostatic strain at the solid/liquid interface and
the predicted variation of the mean particle size. The reported experimental
and theoretical methods are used to completely elucidate the basic
physico-chemical processes responsible for the laser-induced photobleaching
kinetics of glutathione-capped CdTe aqueous QDs with very small mean
sizes. For this purpose, we synthesized a series of colloidal QD samples
with mean particle diameters ranging from 1.95 to 2.68 nm. Our results
indicate that a faster photobleaching rate occurs in QD samples with
smaller sizes in which particle dissolution under laser irradiation
is predominant. On the other hand, the photobleaching rate becomes
slower in samples with larger dot sizes, possibly due to the formation
of core/shell structures in solution via thermal degradation of thiol
ligands either during the chemical synthesis or as a consequence of
the subsequent interaction with the excitation laser.