Selective detection of trace amount of Cu2+ using semiconductor nanoparticles in photoelectrochemical analysis.

A highly sensitive and selective photoelectrochemical sensor for Cu(2+) was developed based on the selective interaction between CdS quantum dots (QDs) immobilized on an indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode surface and Cu(2+) in a triethanolamine (TEA) solution to form Cu(x)S-doped CdS QDs, which disrupts the electron transfer from the conduction band of CdS to ITO and results in a decrease of photocurrent.