Electrodeposition of Nanostructures Size-Quantized Films on Metal Substrates

4 Electrodeposition of Nanostructures Size-Quantized Films on Metal Substrates 

Thin film coatings of nanocrystalline semiconductors, as collections of quantum dots (QD or Q-dot) attached to a solid surface, resemble in many ways semiconductor colloids dispersed in a liquid or solid phase and can be considered as a subsection of the latter category. The first 3D quantum size effect, on small Agl and CdS colloids, was observed and correctly explained, back in 1967 [109]. However, systematic studies in this field only began in the 1980s. 

It is well known presently that under certain conditions self-assembled nanocrystal QDs may nucleate spontaneously when a material is grown by an atomistic 

For a detailed insight into the work briefly outlined in the last paragraphs, the reader should consult the expert account of Modes and Rubinstein, concerning research results up to 2000 [122], 

A novel, electrochemically assisted method of obtaining semiconductor quantum dots supported on a surface has been introduced by Penner and his group [123], It comprised a hybrid electrochemical/chemical (E/C) process consisting of electrochemical deposition followed by chemical modification and it was described as a general, rapid, and low-cost solution-phase method for synthesizing supported Q-dots of metal salts. 

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