The Primarily Undergraduate Nanomaterials Cooperative: A New Model for Supporting Collaborative Research at Small Institutions on a National Scale.

The Primarily Undergraduate Nanomaterials Cooperative (PUNC) is an organization for research-active faculty studying nanomaterials at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs), where undergraduate teaching and research go hand-in-hand. In this perspective, we outline the differences in maintaining an active research group at a PUI compared to an R1 institution. We also discuss the work of PUNC, which focuses on community building, instrument sharing, and facilitating new collaborations. Currently consisting of 37 members from across the United States, PUNC has created an online community consisting of its Web site (nanocooperative.org), a weekly online summer group meeting program for faculty and students, and a Discord server for informal conversations. Additionally, in-person symposia at ACS conferences and PUNC-specific conferences are planned for the future. It is our hope that in the years to come PUNC will be seen as a model organization for community building and research support at primarily undergraduate institutions.

Synthesis and characterization of AgGaS2 nanoparticles: a study of growth and fluorescence.

Silver gallium sulfide nanocrystals were synthesized and characterized by fluorescence, TEM, EDS, and XRD to better understand the material system with an ideal band gap of 2.7 eV. The crystals were found to nucleate in the monoclinic structure, and develop two fluorescence peaks (650, 460 nm) influenced by stoichiometry.

Anisotropic formation and distribution of stacking faults in II-VI semiconductor nanorods.

Nanocrystals of cadmium selenide exhibit a form of polytypism with stable forms in both the wurtzite and zinc blende crystal structures. As a result, wurtzite nanorods of cadmium selenide tend to form stacking faults of zinc blende along the c-axis. These faults were found to preferentially form during the growth of the (001) face, which accounts for 40% of the rod's total length. Since II-VI semiconductor nanorods lack inversion symmetry along the c-axis of the particle, the two ends of the nanorod may be identified by this anisotropic distribution of faults.

Selective facet reactivity during cation exchange in cadmium sulfide nanorods.

The partial transformation of ionic nanocrystals through cation exchange has been used to synthesize nanocrystal heterostructures. We demonstrate that the selectivity for cation exchange to take place at different facets of the nanocrystal plays an important role in determining the resulting morphology of the binary heterostructure. In the case of copper(I) (Cu(+)) cation exchange in cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanorods, the reaction starts preferentially at the ends of the nanorods such that copper sulfide (Cu(2)S) grows inward from either end. The resulting morphology is very different from the striped pattern obtained in our previous studies of silver(I) (Ag(+)) exchange in CdS nanorods where nonselective nucleation of silver sulfide (Ag(2)S) occurs (Robinson, R. D.; Sadtler, B.; Demchenko, D. O.; Erdonmez, C. K.; Wang, L.-W.; Alivisatos, A. P. Science 2007, 317, 355-358). From interface formation energies calculated for several models of epitaxial connections between CdS and Cu(2)S or Ag(2)S, we infer the relative stability of each interface during the nucleation and growth of Cu(2)S or Ag(2)S within the CdS nanorods. The epitaxial attachments of Cu(2)S to the end facets of CdS nanorods minimize the formation energy, making these interfaces stable throughout the exchange reaction. Additionally, as the two end facets of wurtzite CdS nanorods are crystallographically nonequivalent, asymmetric heterostructures can be produced.

TiO2 nanoparticles as a soft X-ray molecular probe.

This communication reports the development of a TiO2-streptavidin nanoconjugate as a new biological label for X-ray bio-imaging applications; this new probe, used in conjunction with the nanogold probe, will make it possible to obtain quantitative, high-resolution information about the location of proteins using X-ray microscopy.

Modulation-enhanced sensitivity of holographic interferometry.

A modulation-demodulation scheme substantially enhances diffusion-dominated-adaptive-interferometric sensitivity. The path length sensitivity is improved by converting a quadratic small-signal response, easily drowned in system noise, to a linear response by mixing with a strong phase modulation. This conversion also shifts low-frequency signals away from 1/f noise. Experimental results show 180 fm/ [square root]Hz displacement sensitivity for a 5 Hz signal with a few milliwatts of optical power, an improvement of 3 orders of magnitude over the unenhanced system.

Semiconductor nanocrystal quantum dots on single crystal semiconductor substrates: high resolution transmission electron microscopy.

We report on high-resolution transmission electron microscope structural studies of InAs colloidal semiconductor nanocrystal quantum dots (NCQDs) on ultrathin GaAs (001) semiconductor single-crystal substrates. We employ a benign method for preparing electron transparent specimens that is suitable for the study of such fragile samples. The image contrast comprises contributions from electron scattering from both the NCs and the GaAs substrate. Long-term electron exposure studies reveal different damage mechanisms operative in the nanocrystals and the substrate.

Integrated semiconductor nanocrystal and epitaxical nanostructure systems: structural and optical behavior.

Integration of semiconductor epitaxical nanostructures and nanocrystals into two classes of quantum structures, uncovered adsorbed nanocrystals or buried via epitaxical overgrowth, is successfully demonstrated through structural and optical studies. The combination InGaAs/GaAs epitaxical structures and InAs nanocrystals is employed as a vehicle with the functional aim of exploiting the well developed optoelectronic communication technology based on the former with the biochemical and biomedical applications for which the latter are well suited.

Cation exchange reactions in ionic nanocrystals.

Cation exchange has been investigated in a wide range of nanocrystals of varying composition, size, and shape. Complete and fully reversible exchange occurs, and the rates of the reactions are much faster than in bulk cation exchange processes. A critical size has been identified below which the shapes of complex nanocrystals evolve toward the equilibrium shape with lowest energy during the exchange reaction. Above the critical size, the anion sublattice remains intact and the basic shapes of the initial nanocrystals are retained throughout the cation exchange. The size-dependent shape change can also be used to infer features of the microscopic mechanism.

Colloidal nanocrystal heterostructures with linear and branched topology.

The development of colloidal quantum dots has led to practical applications of quantum confinement, such as in solution-processed solar cells, lasers and as biological labels. Further scientific and technological advances should be achievable if these colloidal quantum systems could be electronically coupled in a general way. For example, this was the case when it became possible to couple solid-state embedded quantum dots into quantum dot molecules. Similarly, the preparation of nanowires with linear alternating compositions--another form of coupled quantum dots--has led to the rapid development of single-nanowire light-emitting diodes and single-electron transistors. Current strategies to connect colloidal quantum dots use organic coupling agents, which suffer from limited control over coupling parameters and over the geometry and complexity of assemblies. Here we demonstrate a general approach for fabricating inorganically coupled colloidal quantum dots and rods, connected epitaxially at branched and linear junctions within single nanocrystals. We achieve control over branching and composition throughout the growth of nanocrystal heterostructures to independently tune the properties of each component and the nature of their interactions. Distinct dots and rods are coupled through potential barriers of tuneable height and width, and arranged in three-dimensional space at well-defined angles and distances. Such control allows investigation of potential applications ranging from quantum information processing to artificial photosynthesis.