Chemistry
Area of Doctoral Study: Chemistry
Undergraduate Institute: Metropolitan State University
Research Advisor: Marie-Christine Onuta, Ph.D.
Description of Research
The coupling of semiconductor quantum dots (QD) with anisotropic gold nanoparticles (AuNP) is of special interest because of the unique optical properties that the assembly exhibits, specifically induced transparency that results from Fano interference (intermediate coupling). Additionally, the theorized laser-induced “turn-on/off” optical properties of the AuNP-QD-AuNP assembly offer the prospect of application in quantum computing, ultra-small lasers, etc. Thus, in an initial stage, the synthesis of AuNP-QD nanoparticle dimer is essential to obtain a better understanding of these assemblies. Therefore, we propose a reaction scheme to functionalize gold nanobipyramids (AuBP) at their tips with an amine ligand, and to couple them with carboxylate-functionalized CdSe/CdS core-shell quantum dots to create the AuBP-QD dimer via amide bond linkage. Current research is being performed to increase the coupling yield, obtain better spatial control of the reaction, and isolate the novel nano-assemblies.