High-Temperature Luminescence Quenching of Colloidal Quantum Dots

Thermal quenching of quantum dot (QD) luminescence is important for application in luminescent devices. Systematic studies of the quenching behavior above 300 K are, however, lacking. Here, high-temperature (300-500 K) luminescence studies are reported for highly efficient CdSe core-shell quantum dots (QDs), aimed at obtaining insight into temperature quenching of QD emission. Through thermal cycling (yoyo) experiments for QDs in polymer matrices, reversible and irreversible luminescence quenching processes can be distinguished. For a variety of core-shell systems, reversible quenching is observed in a similar temperature range, between 100 and 180 °C. The irreversible quenching behavior varies between different systems. Mechanisms for thermal quenching are discussed.