Doping and Charging in Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals

Modern semiconductor technology has been enabled by the ability to control the number of carriers (electrons and holes) that are available in the semiconductor crystal. This control has been achieved primarily with two methods: doping, which entails the introduction of impurity atoms that contribute additional carriers into the crystal lattice; and charging, which involves the use of applied electric fields to manipulate carrier densities near an interface or junction. By controlling the carriers with these methods, the electrical properties of the semiconductor can be precisely tailored for a particular application. Accordingly, doping and charging play a major role in most modern semiconductor devices.