Highly fluorescent quantum dot@silica nanoparticles by a novel post-treatment for live cell imaging

Highly fluorescent CdSe/CdS/ZnS core/shell/shell QD@SiO2 NPs have been synthesized via a reverse microemulsion approach with a novel post-treatment process by combining annealing with photoactivation. The QD@SiO2 NPs have a high photoluminescent quantum yield of up to 56% and were successfully applied to cellular uptake by HeLa cells.