Effect of donor-acceptor concentration ratios on nonradiative energy transfer in closely packed CdTe quantum dots

Abstract

This study investigates the dependence of Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) on donor-acceptor (D/A) concentration ratios in mixed-size CdTe quantum dots (QDs) films by using photoluminescence (PL) and time-resolved PL spectroscopy. Experimental results indicate that an increasing donor concentration significantly quenches the emission intensity and lifetime in donor QDs and enhances that in acceptor QDs, providing clear evidence of increased FRET efficiency. When D/A ratio exceeds 6, however, the emission intensity and the lifetime of acceptors start to decline, reflecting a decreasing FRET efficiency because of a markedly declining availability of acceptor QDs.