Low temperature non-alkylphosphine based synthesis of cadmium selenide nanocrystals

Non-trialkylphosphine-based synthetic method for producing CdSe nanocrystals was introduced for large-scale production. Quantum-sized CdSe nanocrystals with spherical and rod shapes were synthesized by adding elemental Se powder into Cd-oleylamine complex. Highly crystalline and nearly monodisperse CdSe nanocrystals with both zinc blende and wurtzite structure were found to be produced at a reaction temperature as low as 140 °C. CdSe quantum dots with a diameter of 3.8 nm and nanorods with an aspect ratio of 4.4 or 6.3 were found to be obtained by controlling the monomer concentration and initial precursor ratio. Furthermore, the shape evolution and growth kinetics of CdSe nanocrystals were found to be dramatically affected by reaction temperature.