Patterning without polymers: Nanoscale patterning usually requires multiple steps to mask, pattern, and develop sequential layers. One overriding concern is to obtain compatibility between all the materials, as well as the patterning techniques used, to ensure accurate and clean processing. Wang et al. use light-responsive ligands to change the solubility of nanocrystals in specific solvents, so that development can be done by simple redispersion of nanocrystals in dark regions (see the Perspective by Striccoli). The process can fully utilize the advantages of conventional semiconductor processing, but without the need for photoresists, because the nanocrystals are only deposited where they are exposed to light. Science , this issue p. 385 ; see also p. 353

Switching on quantum dot lasers: The optical properties of quantum dots can be tailored with alterations to their size and composition. Developing quantum dots as low-threshold laser sources requires overcoming problems associated with carrier recombination and stability. Kozlov et al. report success in this direction by demonstrating that a mix of processing and postsynthesis charging can overcome these problems. Synthesis of compositionally graded core-shell quantum dots followed by a carrier charging step provides stable, low-threshold lasing. Science , this issue p. 672

Fast near-IR (NIR) emitters are highly valuable in telecommunications and biological imaging. The most established NIR emitters are epitaxially grown In_xGa_1−xAs quantum dots (QDs), but epitaxial growth has several disadvantages. Colloidal synthesis is a viable alternative that produces a few NIR-emitting materials, but they suffer from long photoluminescence (PL) times. These long PL times are intrinsic in some NIR materials (PbS, PbSe) but are attributed to emission from bright trapped carrier states in others. We show that Cd₃P₂ QDs possess substantial trap emission with radiative times >10¹ ns. Surface passivation through shell growth or coordination of Lewis acids is shown to accelerate the NIR emission from Cd₃P₂ QDs by decreasing the amount of trap emission. This finding brings us one step closer to the application of colloidally synthesized QDs as quantum emitters.

The current need to accelerate the adoption of photovoltaic (PV) systems has increased the need to explore new nanomaterials that can harvest and convert solar energy into electricity. Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) are good candidates because of their tunable physical and chemical properties. CuCrS₂ has shown good electrical and thermoelectrical properties; however, its optical and photoconductivity properties remain unexplored. In this study, we synthesized CuCrS₂ nanosheets with average dimensions of 43.6 ± 6.7 nm in length and 25.6 ± 4.1 nm in width using a heat-up synthesis approach and fabricated films by the spray-coating method to probe their photoresponse. This method yielded CuCrS₂ nanosheets with an optical bandgap of ~1.21 eV. The fabricated film had an average thickness of ~570 nm, exhibiting a net current conversion efficiency of ~11.3%. These results demonstrate the potential use of CuCrS₂ as an absorber layer in solar cells.