Luminescent Cu doped CdTe nanocrystals via cation exchange of Cu₇Te₅ nanocubes: From undoped to doped emission

In II-VI group, the doping in CdTe nanocrystals (NCs) is more difficult than other chalcogenides. In this communication, CdTe nanocrystals containing Cu impurities were carefully synthesized based on controlled reverse cation exchange process between as-prepared Cu₇Te₅ nanocubes and Cd²⁺ ions. By well-defined Cu₇Te₅ nanocubes, the obtained CdTe NCs kept the original morphology. The concentration of Cu impurities in CdTe NCs was controlled by the regulation such reverse cation exchange. Additionally, the regulation from band gap (BG) photoluminescence (PL) to the coexistence of the bandgap emission, dopant emission, and surface-state emission was realized. This tailoring from undoped to doped emission in the case of Cu impurities is helpful to study the Cu related doping in telluride NCs.