Scalable Heating-Up Synthesis of Monodisperse Cu₂ZnSnS₄ Nanocrystals

Abstract

Monodisperse Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) nanocrystals were prepared by a facile, high yield, scalable and high concentration heating-up procedure. An efficient mixing and heat transfer in the reaction mixture using intensive argon bubbling and a careful control of the heating ramp stability were key parameters to minimize the nanocrystal size distribution. Optimized synthesis conditions allowed the production of several grams of highly monodisperse CZTS nanocrystals per batch, with a 5wt% concentration and a yield above 90 %.

Solution-based synthesis and processing of Sn- and Bi-doped Cu3SbSe4nanocrystals, nanomaterials and ring-shaped thermoelectric generators

“…57 However, it was repeatedly reported that Cu-based NCs typically have tightly bound amines bound to the surface. 13,58 It should however be noted that OLA is quite easily desorbed during purification suggesting only a moderate binding affinity for the NC surface, in line with L-type ligand behaviour. To facilitate charge transport/transfer, CASe NCs were thoroughly purified by multiple precipitation/re-dispersion steps and subsequently treated with NH 4 SCN, which could efficiently displace remaining OLA.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Beyond the best studied ternary and quaternary Cu-Ga-In, [8][9][10] Cu-Zn-Sn, [11][12][13][14][15] Cu-Zn-Ge 16,17 compounds, some I−V−VI tetrahedrally coordinated semiconductors also offer excellent functional properties, but remain largely underexplored. In particular, Cu 3 SbSe 4 (CASe) is a semiconductor with a relatively small direct band gap of 0.3 eV and a defect-related carrier density on the order of 10 18 cm -3 at ambient temperature.…”

A low-cost, sulfurization free approach to control optical and electronic properties of Cu2ZnSnS4 via precursor variation

“…The spectra has been deconvoluted to gain a better understanding of the different phases present in the material and changes in their relative intensity with changes in the precursor ratio. The peaks at ~334 cm -1 and ~287 cm -1 are the primary and secondary characteristic peaks for kesterite CZTS phase respectively [32][33][34]. The peaks at ~358 cm -1 and ~657 cm -1 can be attributed to ZnS [33,35] while the peak at ~471 cm -1 belongs to Cu2-xS [33], both of which are unwanted secondary phases.…”

“…The peaks at ~334 cm -1 and ~287 cm -1 are the primary and secondary characteristic peaks for kesterite CZTS phase respectively [32][33][34]. The peaks at ~358 cm -1 and ~657 cm -1 can be attributed to ZnS [33,35] while the peak at ~471 cm -1 belongs to Cu2-xS [33], both of which are unwanted secondary phases. As the quantity of the sulfur precursor is increased, the intensity of the peaks indicating kesterite CZTS phase increase while those for the secondary phases of ZnS and Cu2-xS decrease.…”

Controlled Assembly of Block Copolymer Coated Nanoparticles in 2D Arrays

“…From this we expected to obtain insights into the interplay of nanoparticle surface curvature and block copolymer interfacial curvature on the self-assembled morphology.W ec hose poly(styrene-b-isoprene) (PS-PI) block copolymers because their phase behavior has been wellestablished. [19] Theb lock copolymer molecular weights,c ompositions as well as the diameters of the nanoparticles are given in Table 1. PEHA shows strong coordinative binding,but still possesses sufficient surface mobility to reach high grafting densities.…”