Ultra-Confined Visible-Light-Emitting Colloidal Indium Arsenide Quantum Dots

Indium arsenide quantum dots, which typically emit in the near-infrared, have been utilized in various optoelectronics and biomedical applications, such as covert illumination, optical communication, and deep-tissue imaging. While theory predicts that further quantum confinement through size reduction could enable visible light emission, systems with larger optical bandgaps have not been realized. Here, we report a method of preparing highly luminescent, visible-light-emitting In(Zn)As/ZnSe/ZnS QD, using a low-temperature nanocluster synthesis approach. Each QD contains an ultraconfined In(Zn)As nanocluster and fluoresces at tunable wavelengths between 538 and 640 nm with a high photoluminescence quantum efficiency of 58%. We confirm, through DFT and spectroscopic analysis, that the strong confinement effects in the few-atom-wide In(Zn)As nanoclusters are responsible for the significant spectral shift from the near-infrared to the visible region. These findings suggest that broader-than-expected optical tuning may now be achievable in other quantum-confined semiconductor systems, which could lead to a wider scope of functional applications in optoelectronics.