Optical Properties of Mn-Doped ZnTe Magic Size Nanocrystals

In this letter we report successful doping of ZnTe magic size nanocrystals (MSNCs) with Mn2+. Colloidal ZnTe MSNCs are prepared via a hot-injection method and doped with Mn2+ via cation exchange. The doped MSNCs show an emission band centered at 620 nm with a radiative decay time of 45 mu s, characteristic of Mn2+ in ZnTe. The excitation spectrum of the Mn2+ emission shows narrow absorption bands corresponding to different sizes of ZnTe MSNCs providing further evidence that the 620 nm emission originates from Mn2+ incorporated in the ZnTe host, rather than Mn2+ bound to the surface. The Mn2+-doped ZnTe clusters may serve as nuclei for the growth of larger ZnTe quantum dots doped with a single Mn2+ ion.