Efficient exciton funneling in cascaded PbS quantum dot superstructures.

Benzenedithiol (BDT) and ethanedithiol (EDT) ligand-exchange treatments can be used to cross-link colloidal PbS quantum dots into nanocrystalline film structures with distinct optoelectronic properties. Such structures can provide a unique platform to study the energy transfer between layers of quantum dots with different sizes. In this report, efficient exciton funneling and recycling of surface state-bound excitons is observed in cascaded PbS quantum dot-based multilayered superstructures, where the excitons transfer from the larger band gap or donor layers to the smallest band gap or acceptor layers.