Enhanced luminescence in electrospun polymer hybrids containing Mn-doped ZnSe/ZnS nanocrystals

Fibrous polymer hybrids containing Mn-doped ZnSe/ZnS (Mn:ZnSe/ZnS) core/shell nanocrystals (NCs) were successfully prepared by electrospinning. First, Mn-doped ZnSe NCs were successfully synthesised and then coated with the ZnS shell in aqueous solution at low temperature to obtain Mn:ZnSe/ZnS NCs. The resulting Mn:ZnSe/ZnS NCs with the 4-to-6-nm sizes emitted the strong and characteristic luminescence that originates from the 4T1→6A1 transition in Mn2+ ions. Further, the prepared Mn:ZnSe/ZnS NCs were embedded into poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibers by one-step electrospinning of PMMA/NCs or PAN/NCs mixtures, respectively. The surface morphology of the fibrous Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PMMA and Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PAN hybrids was imaged by using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The distribution of the Mn:ZnSe/ZnS NCs into polymer fibers and its crystallinity were determined by a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM) equipped with the selected area electron diffraction (SAED). The optical characterisation of the fabricated fibrous hybrids showed that the photoluminescence from Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PMMA was much enhanced compared to that from Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PAN. We have discussed on the mechanism governing these emission properties to see that the electrospun Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PMMA hybrid is very promising in designing emitters for solid-state illumination sources and lighting devices. [Display omitted] •Novel fibrous polymer (PMMA, PAN) hybrids containing Mn-doped ZnSe/ZnS NCs were successfully prepared by electrospinning.•PMMA adds passivating NCs to form type-I-like structure to enhance the luminescence and stability of Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PMMA.•Mn:ZnSe/ZnS-in-PAN formed type-II-like structure that promotes the separation of the photo-generated charge carriers.