Facile synthesis of red- to near-infrared-emitting CdTexSe1−x alloyed quantum dots via a noninjection one-pot route

High-quality CdTeSe colloidal nanocrystals with gradient distribution of components, consisting of Te-rich inner cores and Se-rich outer shells, were synthesized in a “green” solvent paraffin via a noninjection one-pot approach with the use of cadmium oxide (CdO), elemental tellurium, and elemental selenium as Cd, Te, and Se sources, respectively. All of these reactants were loaded at room temperature. This features synthetic reproducibility and large-scale capability. The bandgap engineering of the obtained CdTeSe QDs can be conveniently realized through the variation of growth temperature. Red- to near-infrared-emitting (620–780 nm) QDs with nearly identical particle sizes can be obtained when the reaction temperature was changed from 180 to 280 °C with the fixation of precursor feed ratio at 5Cd–0.5Te–0.5Se. The as-prepared CdTeSe QDs exhibit PL QY as high as 53%. The resulting CdTeSe QDs were characterized by UV–vis and photoluminescence spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy.