2013/12/02 by Ayaskanta Sahu, Daniele Braga, Oliver Waser +3 · 3 citations
Materials Science · Engineering · Chemistry · #Quantum Dots Synthesis And Properties #Chalcogenide Semiconductor Thin Films #Nanocluster Synthesis and Applications #Nanocrystal #Materials science #Phase transition #Phase (matter) #Semiconductor #Nanotechnology #Solid solution #Chemical physics #Optoelectronics #Condensed matter physics #Chemistry #Physics
paper · doi:10.1021/nl4041498
openalex publication_date 2013/12/02 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/16
Nanocrystals are known to alter the relative stability of bulk solid phases. Here we test the limits of this effect on Ag2Se nanocrystals, a promising new electronic and infrared material. In the bulk, Ag2Se exhibits a solid-solid phase transition to a superionic conducting phase at moderate temperatures. We map this phase transition as a function of size, temperature, and surface treatment in Ag2Se core-only and core-shell nanocrystals. We show that the transition can be tuned not just below but also above the bulk phase-transition temperature. This phase flexibility has implications for applications in optoelectronic and phase-memory devices.