Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2012 in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, July 29 – August 2, 2012.

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2010 in Portland, Oregon, USA, August 1 – August 5, 2010.

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2007 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA, August 5 – August 9, 2007

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2006 in Chicago, Illinois, USA, July 30 – August 3, 2006

A process for the synthesis of CdS nanoparticles embedded in hybrid organic/inorganic silica matrices has been developed, based both on colloid and sol-gel chemistry. The large possibilities offered by these techniques allow the study of the influence of various parameters on the luminescence properties of the nanoparticles. Two directions were investigated: first, we characterized the surface of the nanoparticles complexed with an organic thiol using NMR spectroscopy. Then, we synthesized new systems to study the influence of chemical modifications, such as the composition of the aggregates (CdS:Mn), the surface (CdS/ZnS core/shell nanostructures) and the interface between the aggregate and the gel matrix.

Sol-gel matrices doped with lead sulfide nanoparticles showing a structured absorption spectrum were synthesized by using the procedure previously reported for CdS doped matrices. The morphology of the PbS aggregates was investigated by high resolution electron microscopy, and the observations are correlated with the absorption spectra. Finally, preliminary results concerning some linear optical properties of the materials are presented.