Cold Flow as Versatile Approach for Stable and Highly Luminescent Quantum Dot-Salt Composites

Since the beginning of the 1980s, colloidally synthesized quantum dots (QDs) have been in the focus of interest due to their possible implementation for color conversion, luminescent light concentrators, and lasing. For all these applications, the QDs benefit from being embedded into a host matrix to ensure stability and usability. Many different host materials used for this purpose still have their individual shortcomings. Here, we present a universal, fast, and flexible approach for the direct incorporation of a wide range of QDs into inorganic ionic crystals using cold flow. The QD solution is mixed with a finely milled salt, followed by the removal of the solvent under vacuum. Under high pressure (GPa), the salt powder loaded with QDs transforms into transparent pellets. This effect is well-known for many inorganic salts (e.g., KCl, KBr, KI, NaCl, CsI, AgCl) from, e.g., sample preparation for IR spectroscopy. With this approach, we are able to obtain strongly luminescent QD-salt composites, have precise control over the loading, and provide a chemically robust matrix ensuring long-term stability of the embedded QDs. Furthermore, we show the photo-, chemical, and thermal stability of the composite materials and their use as color conversion layers for a white light-emitting diode (w-LED). The method presented can potentially be used for all kinds of nanoparticles synthesized in organic as well as in aqueous media.