Shining Light on Group II-VI Chiral Quantum Dots: Synthesis, Chirality Induction, and Applications

Chiral group II-VI quantum dots (QDs) integrate chiral functionalities with the unique optoelectronic properties of QDs, garnering increasing attention in the academic community and demonstrating extensive potential applications. Group II-VI QDs are characterized by their exceptional chemical stability, tunable photoluminescent properties, and high fluorescence quantum yield, rendering them promising candidates for applications in display technologies, asymmetric catalysis, chiral sensing, biomedicine, information encryption, and beyond. However, the current major challenge lies in balancing the luminescent performance with the chiral dissymmetry factor. Full control over nanoscale stereosynthesis and an in-depth understanding of chirality mechanisms across multiple dimensions are critical to overcoming this bottleneck. II-VI QDs refer to semiconductor nanocrystals composed of group II-VI elements. During chiral induction, the pronounced quantum confinement effect in these nanoscale crystals enables the precise modulation of their physicochemical properties through size, morphology, composition, and crystal phase engineering. Consequently, these QDs can exhibit distinct chiroptical activities in the ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared spectral range, such as chiral extinction and circularly polarized luminescence. Herein, this review systematically summarizes various synthesis approaches for group II-VI chiral QDs, from direct aqueous-phase synthesis, postsynthetic modification, oil/water interface-mediated synthesis, to the chiral self-assembly method, analyzing their advantages, disadvantages, and underlying mechanisms. Furthermore, it discusses recent advancements in potential applications of group II-VI chiral QDs over the past decade, aiming to inspire new synthetic strategies and theoretical frameworks that can drive novel insights in this burgeoning field.