Photothermal Response of Photoluminescent Silicon Nanocrystals.

We demonstrate that silicon nanocrystals (Si-NCs) exhibiting relatively high near-IR photoluminescent quantum yields also exhibit a notable photothermal (PT) response. The PT effect has been quantified as a function of NC size, defect concentration, and irradiating energy, suggesting that the origin of the PT response is a combination of carrier thermalization and defect-mediated heating. The PT effect observed under NIR irradiation suggests that Si-NCs could find use in combined in vivo PL imaging and PT therapy.