Tail-group tailoring for narrower green electroluminescence: The role of methoxysilane derivatives in QLEDs

Abstract

Metal halide perovskite nanocrystals (PeNCs) are garnering significant interest as the future of light-emitting materials, primarily due to their exceptional emission characteristics, which include strong excitonic absorption and narrow-band, high-intensity emission. These properties are intricately linked to the surface chemistry of the nanocrystals, which can be effectively manipulated through the choice of ligands and specific reaction conditions during synthesis or subsequent ligand exchanges. In the first, we explore the ligand exchange processing in hexane with thiol-functionalized methoxysilanes, notable for their short chain and bifurcated structure. In the case of surface-modified PeNCs using methoxysilane, strain engineering is dominated by the tail group, which plays an even more important role than size dispersion in their effects on color purity and gamut. In addition, the methoxysilane ligand-induced lattice strain may also significantly alter charge transporting hehavior, as is demonstrated on zinc oxide (ZnO) using 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTMS). These interesting observations arise from nanostrained optoelectronic materials, and are attractive for the development of high-purity electroluminescence devices.