Reversible Charge-Carrier Trapping Slows Förster Energy Transfer in CdSe/CdS Quantum-Dot Solids

The dynamics of photoluminescence (PL) from nanocrystal quantum dots (QDs) is significantly affected by the reversible trapping of photoexcited charge carriers. This process occurs after up to 50% of the absorption events, depending on the type of QD considered, and can extend the time between the photoexcitation and relaxation of the QD by orders of magnitude. Although many optoelectronic applications require QDs assembled into a QD solid, until now, reversible trapping has been studied only in (ensembles of) spatially separated QDs. Here, we study the influence of reversible trapping on the excited-state dynamics of CdSe/CdS core/shell QDs when they are assembled into close-packed "supraparticles". Time- and spectrally resolved photoluminescence (PL) measurements reveal competition among spontaneous emission, reversible charge-carrier trapping, and Förster resonance energy transfer between the QDs. While Förster transfer causes the PL to red-shift over the first 20-50 ns after excitation, reversible trapping stops and even reverses this trend at later times. We can model this behavior with a simple kinetic Monte Carlo simulation by considering that charge-carrier trapping leaves the QDs in a state with zero oscillator strength in which no energy transfer can occur. Our results highlight that reversible trapping significantly affects the energy and charge-carrier dynamics for applications in which QDs are assembled into a QD solid.