Basic Understanding of Quantum Dots: The Artificial Atoms of the Nanoworld

Abstract

Nanotechnology has been a conversation starter in the scientific communities for decades. The advancement oftechnologies that have helped humans go beyond the microscale to the nanoscale with its enthralling newconcepts in store has opened up various avenues for research. One of the fascinating nanostructures we shalldiscuss in this paper are Quantum Dots (QDs). QDs are clusters of semiconductor atoms confined in all threedimensions to the nanoscale, resulting in properties quite distinct from molecular structures and bulk materials.The most notable property of quantum dots is the production of narrow and specific wavelengths of emittedlight with high spectral resolution and longer lifetimes, making them suitable for real-time in vitro and in vivoimaging. This, coupled with the cost-effective control over the sizes of QDs, leads to the tuning of the emittedwavelengths. Furthermore, carefully coating various functionalities enhances the specificity and makes themsuitable for in vivo targeting. QDsare being used for recent development in various fields, such as light-emittingdiodes, photovoltaics, etc. This review paper will focus mainly on the various properties of quantum dots, andthe reasons behind the same, with akeen focus on the application of QDs in biomedical imaging, biologicalsensing, and so on. This review hopes to capture a basic understanding of QDs and their properties with a keenfocus on understanding the recent developments and biomedical applications.