Aqueous synthesis of tunable fluorescent, semiconductor CuInS2 quantum dots for bioimaging

Abstract

Herein, we have presented a unique strategy for aqueous synthesis of semiconductor CuInS2 QDs which showed multiple fluorescence. These synthesized CuInS2 QDs were prepared in aqueous media with biocompatible glutathione (GSH), as capping ligand and stabilizer, while the fluorescence and crystallinity were controlled by varying the reaction time. The investigation of various other experimental parameters including precursor’s concentration, effect of pH, and stability of QDs has also been carried out. These QDs were characterized by XRD, TEM, and FT-IR. Meanwhile, optical properties of as synthesized QDs were also investigated by fluorescence spectroscopy. Furthermore, the synthesized QDs were also less cytotoxic and maintained remarkable cell viability up to 100 μg/mL. When bioconjugated with Arginyl-glycyl-aspartic acid (RGD) moiety, the obtained CuInS2-RGD QDs have shown higher biocompatibility and good bioimaging performance. Keywords: Aqueous synthesis, CuInS2, Quantum dots, Fluorescence, Bioimaging