Stimuli responsive polymer/quantum dot hybrid platforms modified at the nanoscale

Quantum dots, QDs, receive growing attention from many research disciplines owing to their advantages as fluorescent probes including their nanoscale size (similar to biomolecules), high quantum yield and molar extinction coefficients, versatility in surface modification, broad excitation spectra (for multicolor imaging) and narrow band emission and tunable optical properties. Fabricating QD/polymer hybrid nanostructures enables realization of many potential applications as optoelectronic devices, biological sensors, and photonic structures because encaging QDs within polymer matrices not only enables the control over optical and spectroscopic properties of QDs but also introduces a strong resistance to chemical and photodegradation. The research described in this thesis aims at synthesis and characterization of CdSe/ZnS core/shell QDs, synthesis and characterization of temperature-responsive polymer matrices made of poly(N-isopropylacryl amide), PNIPAM, as carriers of QDs, and fabrication of QD/PNIPAM assemblies with potential applications as sensing devices to be used in bio-nanotechnology.