Solid-state Photoluminescent Quantum Dots for Explosive Detection

Quantum dots are an emerging class of photoluminescent nanomaterials with peculiar properties arising from their nanometric size that allows the occurrence of strong quantum confinement effect. In recent years, these zero-dimensional semiconductor nanoparticles have been attracting increasing attention as luminescent probe for optical sensing applications. However, to date, almost all quantum dots- based sensors reported in literature exploit fluorescence from solutions whereas the development of solid-state photoluminescent quantum dots still remains a challenge. In this paper, we demonstrate the feasibility of exploiting the solid-state photoluminescence of PbS quantum dots deposited on a silicon substrate for vapor explosive detection, a worrying priority for homeland security and counter-terrorism applications.