Cadmium-free quantum dot
semiconductor nanoparticles
Quantum dots (QDs) are semiconductor nanoparticles with a size less than 10 nm. They exhibited size-dependent properties especially in the optical absorption and the photoluminescence (PL). Typically, the fluorescence emission peak of the QDs can be tuned by changing their diameters. So far, QDs were consisted of different group elements such as CdTe, CdSe, CdS in the II-VI category, InP or InAs in the III-V category, CuInS2 or AgInS2
in the I–III–VI2 category, and PbSe/PbS in the IV-VI category. These QDs are promising candidates as fluorescent labels in various biological applications such as bioimaging, biosensing and drug delivery.
However, most of the QDs in the commercial market are cadmium (Cd)-based QDs. Their potential toxicity in the biological environment has been debated over the past decade as the Cd2+ ions released from the QD surface are highly toxic to the cells and tissues. Thus, many researchers have focused on the development of cadmium-free quantum dots (CFQDs) in the 2010s.
Applications
Doped ZnS/ZnSe QDs, graphene QDs and silicon QDs are novel CFQD types that have been demonstrated their low-toxicity and high colloidal and PL stability for in vitro and in vivo models. DNA/peptide-functionalized QDs have been widely used for targeted cell and tissue imaging and the monitoring of the drug delivery path.
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