2019, Krivenkov, V. A., Samokhvalov, P. S., Nabiev, I., Самохвалов, Павел Сергеевич, Набиев, Игорь Руфаилович

The photosensitive protein bacteriorhodopsin (bR) has been shown to be a promising material for optoelectronic and photovoltaic applications, but it cannot effectively absorb and utilize light energy in the near-infrared (NIR) region of the optical spectrum. Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have two-photon absorption cross-sections two orders of magnitude larger than those of bR and can effectively transfer the up-converted energy of two NIR photons to bR via the Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET). In this study we fabricated a hybrid material in the form of an aqueous solution of electrostatically bound complexes of QDs and purple membranes (PMs) containing bR. Efficient FRET from QDs to bR was observed in these complexes under selective two-photon excitation of QDs. Then, we fabricated a photoelectrochemical cell operating in the NIR spectral region. Measurement of the photoelectrical signals from the cell containing pure PMs, or QD-PM hybrid material has shown that the light conversion in the QD-PM hybrid material with 3:1 bR-to-QD molar ratio is more efficient than in the material with 20:1 bR-to-QD molar ratio. The results of this study may extend the use of bioinspired hybrid materials in optoelectronics, holography, and bioenergetics under the conditions of nonlinear excitation.

2019, Samokhvalov, P. S., Volodin, D. O., Bozrova, S. V., Dovzhenko, D. S., Zvaigzne, M. A., Lin'kov, P. A., Nifontova, G. O., Petrova, I. O., Sukhanova, A. V., Nabiev, I. R., Самохвалов, Павел Сергеевич, Нифонтова, Галина Олеговна, Суханова, Алена Владимировна, Набиев, Игорь Руфаилович

© 2019, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.Abstract: Plasmonic nanoparticles have become a popularly accepted research tool in optoelectronics, photonics, and biomedical applications. The relatively recently appearing semiconductor plasmonic nanoparticles, as opposed to metal ones, are characterized by infrared plasmonic optical transitions and their application has a great future. In this work, the possibility of conversion of semiconductor (excitonic) fluorescence nanocrystals, i.e., quantum dots of the CuInS2 composition, to plasmonic nanoparticles by postsynthetic treatment without changes in the chemical composition of inorganic part of the nanocrystals was demonstrated for the first time ever.

2019, Krivenkov, V. A., Samokhvalov, P. S., Chistyakov, A. A., Nabiev, I., Самохвалов, Павел Сергеевич, Чистяков, Александр Александрович, Набиев, Игорь Руфаилович

Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have high two-photon absorption cross-sections and long photoluminescence (PL) lifetimes, which make them a promising photosensitive part for fabrication of QD-based hybrid materials for two-photon bio-imaging, bio- and optoelectronics. In these areas, mode-locked femtosecond lasers are often used for two-photon excitation of QDs because of the high peak intensity of the laser pulse. However, the QD radiative lifetime usually exceeds the period between the laser pulses of such laser systems, which can affect the absorption and PL properties of QDs. In this work, we investigated the PL properties of CdSe/ZnS QDs under two-photon excitation. We have shown that using femtosecond laser excitation at a wavelength of 790 nm with a pulse repetition rate of 80 MHz and a peak intensity of more than 10 GW/cm(2), the two-photon absorption in QD is saturated. However if QDs were in complexes with purple membranes (PM) containing the photosensitive protein bacteriorhodopsin (bR), saturation was not observed up to an intensity of about 27 GW/cm(2). It was concluded that the difference in the saturation of two-photon absorption between QDs and QD-PM material is associated with the Forster resonance energy transfer from QD to bR and the corresponding shortening of the PL lifetime. The results obtained will allow to optimize the two-photon excitation regime of QD-PM nano-bio hybrid material which will expand the possible areas of its application in bio-imaging, bio- and optoelectronics.

2019, Dyagileva, D. V., Krivenkov, V. A., Samokhvalov, P. S., Nabiev, I., Rakovich, Yu. P., Самохвалов, Павел Сергеевич, Набиев, Игорь Руфаилович

© Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) are widely used as components of hybrid materials for development of efficient light emitters and convertors. Their unique nonlinear optical properties, such as two-photon absorption and two-photon photoluminescence from biexcitons, make them promising materials for photovoltaic and optoelectronic applications. In this study, thin-film hybrid materials based on the CdSe(core)/ZnS/CdS/ZnS(multishell) QDs have been fabricated, and the two-photon photoluminescence (PL) from the generated biexcitons have been studied. The results show that fabricated thin-film hybrid materials based on the QDs are efficient fluorophores in the one- and two-photon PL regimes for applications in optoelectronics and biosensing.

2016, Sizova, S. V., Oleinikov, V. A., Bouchonville, N., Molinari, M., Samokhvalov, P. S., Sukhanova, A., Nabiev, I., Суханова, Алена Владимировна, Набиев, Игорь Руфаилович, Олейников, Владимир Александрович

The integration of novel nanomaterials with highly functional biological molecules has numerous advanced applications, including optoelectronics, biosensing, imaging, and energy harvesting. This review summarizes recent progress in understanding the mechanisms of energy transfer between semiconductor nanocrystal (so-called quantum dots [QDs]) and photosensitive proteins in heterostructures, such as hybrids of semiconductor nanocrystals with purple membranes containing bacteriorhodopsin (bR) or with photosynthetic reaction centers (RCs). Understanding of these mechanisms should enable prediction of the possible ways to improve the biological function of biomolecules by means of their assembling with QDs and develop novel functional materials with controlled photonic properties and applications. The possible mechanisms of energy transfer from QDs to photochromic biomolecules are discussed and correlated with experimental data. The principles of hybrid structures engineering, donor/acceptor parameters affecting both energy transfer efficiency and biological function, and functionality of these hybrid structures are described. New nanobiohybrid materials are shown to have advanced implications for optoelectronics, photonics, and photovoltaics due to the ability of nanocomponents of these materials for efficient energy harvesting, conversion, and transfer of additional energy to Biosystems, thus making them working more efficiently.