CdO quantum dots (QDs) incorporated in polyacrylamide were synthesized adding aqueous suspension of cadmium oxide in acrylamide:bisacrylamide copolymer. Optical properties of CdO nanocrystals were studied by optical absorption. The size ranges (2-3 nm) were calculated by the effective mass approximation.

The fusion method was used to produce PbS quantum dots (QDs) embedded in S-doped glass matrix (SiO2-Na2CO3-Al2O3-PbO2-B2O3:S). Measurements of optical absorption (OA), photoluminescence (PL) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) have been carried out in order to characterize the produced QDs. A strong red-shift observed in the optical features with an increase of the annealing time indicates an increase in QD-size. The QD sizes predicted by k.p theoretical results were confirmed by AFM observation.

Micron-sized spheres of mesoporous styrene-divinylbenzene (Sty-DVB) copolymer were produced by suspension polymerisation in the presence of inert diluents. Using these mesoporous microspheres as a template, optically stable CdS nanoparticles have been synthesized. To characterize these CdS nanoparticles, Raman spectroscopy and micro-photoluminescence were used. We have observed enhanced emission and lasing action at certain wavelengths that correspond to the whispering gallery (WG) modes of the microspheres. High optical stability and low threshold value make this optical system promising in microlaser applications.