Enhancing X-ray Sensitivity via the Antenna Effect in Quantum Shells with Multiexciton Emission.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41558822.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1021/acsnano.5c21745 and PMC identifier 12875021.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Quantum shells (QSs) with efficient multiexciton emission can generate multiple excitons per particle under high-energy excitation, thereby improving exciton utilization under intense X-ray exposure and offering strong potential for X-ray-based scintillation applications. However, these QSs are typically composed of low-atomic-number (<i>Z</i>) elements, which substantially limits their X-ray absorption efficiency and leads to poor X-ray sensitivity. Here, we overcome this fundamental limitation by introducing a high-<i>Z</i> antenna-sensitization strategy that couples QSs to heavy-element molecular absorbers, which act as X-ray harvesting centers and funnel energy into the QSs via efficient interfacial transfer. By combining enhanced X-ray absorption with efficient interfacial energy transfer and improved exciton utilization, we achieve more than an order-of-magnitude increase in multiexciton-driven QS radioluminescence (RL) relative to pristine shells. Additionally, a high X-ray imaging resolution of 25.2 lp mm<sup>-1</sup> was achieved, exceeding the performance of most previously reported X-ray imaging scintillators. These findings offer a promising design strategy for advancing QS-based materials toward high-performance X-ray imaging applications.