Synergistic Effect of Halogen Ions and Shelling Temperature on Anion Exchange Induced Interfacial Restructuring for Highly Efficient Blue Emissive InP/ZnS Quantum Dots

InP quantum dots (QDs) have attracted much attention owing to their nontoxic properties and shown great potential in optoelectronic applications. Due to the surface defects and lattice mismatch, the interfacial structure of InP/ZnS QDs plays a significant role in their performance. Herein, the formation of In-S and S-x-In-P-1-(x) interlayers through anion exchange at the shell-growth stage is revealed. More importantly, it is proposed that the composition of interface is dependent on the synergistic effect of halogen ions and shelling temperature. High shelling temperature contributes to the optical performance improvement resulting from the formation of interlayers, besides the thicker ZnS shell. Moreover, the effect relates to the halogen ions where I- presents more obvious enhancement than Br- and Cl-, owing to their different ability to coordinate with In dangling bonds, which are inclined to form In-S and S-x-In-P-1-(x) bonds. Further, the anion exchange under I--rich environment causes a blue-shift of emission wavelength with shelling temperature increasing, unobserved in a Cl-- or Br--rich environment. It contributes to the preparation of highly efficient blue emissive InP/ZnS QDs with emission wavelength of 473 nm, photoluminescence quantum yield of approximate to 50% and full width at half maximum of 47 nm.