Nonlinear optical properties of CdS/ZnS quantum dots in a high-molecular-weight polyvinylpyrrolidone matrix

Sols containing core/shell CdS/ZnS semiconductor quantum dots are synthesized and their nonlinear properties, which are interesting for a large variety of applications in nanophotonics, are studied. The quantum dots produced are smaller in dimensions than the exciton Bohr radius and, therefore, exhibit a well-pronounced quantum-confinement effect. The nonlinear optical properties of low-concentration sols are studied upon exposure to laser pulses with an emission wavelength of 532 nm and a duration of 5 ns by the z-scan technique. The dependences of nonlinear optical coefficients on the concentration of CdS/ZnS quantum dots are obtained. The intensity dependence of two-photon absorption coefficients is presented. The dependence determines the boundary of the influence of high-order nonlinearities on the nonlinear transmittance of the samples. The mechanisms of optical limitation exhibited by sols, specifically, two-photon absorption, nonlinear refraction, and nonlinear scattering are discussed.