High Absorbance QDs from Avantama

Chemists involved with research and development (R&D) into novel nanomaterials for electronic structures have come up with various quantum dot (QD) formulations. Although most exhibit extraordinary potential for high-efficiency light generation via photoluminescence, they also have painfully obvious flaws. These range from high toxicity to poor absorbance.

The light-emitting properties of QDs are dependent on both chemistry and size, which makes it difficult to tackle the issue of toxicity without further impacting optical performance. For example: Two of the leading QD chemistries, indium phosphide (InP) and cadmium selenide (CdSe) are both based on hazardous heavy metals. QDs composed of indium phosphide cannot compete with cadmium selenide heterostructures from a performance perspective, but they are RoHS conform, unlike cadmium, which requires a speculative RoHS exemption for application in the display sector.

High absorbance QDs that are heavy-metal free – or at least compliant with current RoHS regulations – is therefore an extremely valuable area of research. Avantama chemists have been exploring the use of novel QDs based on perovskite formulations for years, attempting to reconcile the problem of performance versus toxicity.

High Absorbance QDs: Comparing Performance

Both indium phosphide and cadmium selenide QDs have strict size-dependent limits when it comes to absorbance and emission. In fact, the quantum yield of each technology is insufficient for electronic displays when presented in plain core structures. Each must be encased in a core/shell heterostructure to meet the electronic and optical parameters of the market. The benefit of this is that it is possible to formulate high absorbance QDs using either chemistry, with quantum yields approaching 90%. The drawback to this is that synthesizing core/shell QD solutions with the necessarily narrow particle size distributions makes large-scale production extremely costly and time-consuming. At Avantama, we propose an alternative.

We generate a wide range of high absorbance QDs based on metal halide perovskites. Where our perovskite display materials contain lead, QD films can easily be made that are fully RoHS compliant without having to compromise on performance. The second benefit is that metal halide QDs offer substantially greater performance in the plain core format than any competing alternative. In fact, the absorbance of our QDs exceeds that of indium phosphide by ten times and cadmium selenide by three times.

Contact Avantama for High Absorbance QDs

At Avantama, we offer a range of ready-to-order QD formulations based primarily on metal halide perovskite structures, though our primary competency is custom synthesis. We offer many solutions on a made to order basis, with thousands of compositions and a comprehensive understanding of the minutiae of formulation engineering. Contact us today if you would like to order high absorbance QDs.