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Stable Encapsulation of Quantum Dot Barcodes with Silica Shells
Author(s) -
Hu ShangHsiu,
Gao Xiaohu
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.201000711
Subject(s) - encapsulation (networking) , quantum dot , materials science , nanotechnology , chemical physics , physics , computer network , computer science
Quantum dot‐doped mesoporous microbeads (QDMMs) are encapsulated with silica shells for enhanced chemical stability. The results show that a microemulsion procedure is highly efficient in coating QDMMs with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), which is important in the subsequent deposition of a silica shell. Incorporation of fluorescent silane precursors allows direct observation of silica shells by fluorescence microscopy. The resulting silica‐coated QDMMs (QDMM@SiO 2 ) exhibit remarkable stability against solvent‐induced QD leaching and chemical‐induced fluorescence quenching compared with the uncoated QDMMs. Further development of this technology such as optimization of silica shell thickness, surface modification with non‐fouling polymers, and conjugation with biomolecular probes will enable clinical translation of the optical barcoding technology for highly multiplexed detection and screening of genes and proteins.