Template Growth of Nanocrystalline PbS, CdS, and ZnS on a Polydiacetylene Langmuir Film: An In Situ Grazing Incidence X‐ray Diffraction Study

Abstract

Chemical deposition of nanocrystalline PbS, CdS, and ZnS at the air/solution interface in the absence and presence of a polydiacetylene (PDA) Langmuir film is investigated in situ using grazing incidence X‐ray diffraction. In all cases, it is found that PDA has a pronounced effect on the incipient semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs). In the presence of PDA, PbS NCs showed a <111> orientation in addition to the commonly obtained <100> growth direction of the PbS rock salt structure while CdS and ZnS NCs crystallized in the zinc blende polymorph with a predominant <100> orientation. ZnS NCs were obtained only in the presence of PDA at the air/solution interface.

Controlled preparation of CdS nanoparticle arrays in amphiphilic perylene tetracarboxylic diimides: organization, electron-transfer and semiconducting properties

“…[8][9][10] On a PDA-based (PDA: polydiacetylene) Langmuir film, CdS nanoparticles crystallize in the zinc blende structure with a predominant [100] orientation. 11 Very recently, nucleation of CdS nanocrystals on the red phase of PDA was found to have a size dependent cubic-to-hexagonal transformation. 12 Perylene tetracarboxylic diimide (PDI) derivatives have been extensively and intensively investigated as advanced molecular materials.…”

Nanometer size effects in nucleation, growth and characterization of templated CdS nanocrystal assemblies

“…Consequently, PDA LFs are subject of intense investigation due to their optical 2 and sensing 3,4 properties, as well as to their use as effective templates for nucleation of biomimetic relevant minerals 5 and semiconductor nanocrystals. [6][7][8][9][10] In general, a colorless monomer film undergoes topotactic polymerization upon UV irradiation and transforms into a metastable blue phase (with absorbance peaks at 590 and 640 nm). 11 Additional irradiation dose further transforms the film into a stable red phase (with absorbance peaks at 500 and 550 nm).…”

“…13,14 These, in turn, significantly affect the resulting film properties including the chromatic phases, their transformation kinetics and the properties of the PDA film template. Our earlier studies [5][6][7][8][9][10] on nanocrystal (NC) nucleation at floating PDA LF interfaces were performed on films that were comprised of mixed chromatic phases. In this study, nucleation of CdS NCs under much better defined (nearly pure) chromatic PDA phases is investigated in detail.…”

Zinc modified polydiacetylene Langmuir films

“…The unique electronic and the associated fluorescence and chromatic properties, along with mechanical and chemical stability, make PDA LFs attractive materials for a variety of technological applications such as chemical and biological sensors [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] and effective templates for oriented growth of calcite 8,9 and semiconductor nanocrystals. [10][11][12][13] The spectroscopic properties of polydiacetylenes (PDA) have been widely studied and recently described by Schott 14 and Filhol et al 15 In general, the colorless monomer undergoes topotactic polymerization upon UV irradiation and transforms into the metastable blue phase. An additional irradiation dose further transforms it into the stable red phase.…”