Surface Termination Effects on Zinc Oxide Quantum Dots.

We investigate the effects of surface terminations on the optical properties of 2-6 nm ZnO quantum dots.~ Nanocrystals were grown by wet chemical synthesis in a short-chain alcohol solvent from zinc acetate and sodium hydroxide.~ Quenching of particle growth with various capping agents is necessary to maintain and enhance the unique characteristics of the nanocrystals.~ We reproduce results of previous work and expand on characterization of naked and surface terminated ZnO quantum dots.~ The nanoparticle properties were investigated by UV absorption spectrophotometry, photoluminescence, infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy , and atomic force microscopy techniques.