Ligands for Semiconductor Nanocrystals

A method of making a water-soluble semiconductor nanocrystal comprising:

• purifying imidazole monomers
• purifiying tertiary amine monomers;
• polymerizing imidazole and tertiary amine monomers;
• and
• exchanging the ligand of a capped semiconductor nanocrystal with the imidazole polymer including a zwitterionic moiety.

The method of biological in vivo imaging comprising:

• introducing betaine polyimidazole ligand including a zwitterionic moiety coated semiconductor nanocrystals to the subject;
• allowing the semiconductor nanocrystals to diffuse;
• and
• visualizing the image with photon laser scanning microscopy.

A method of biological in vitro imaging comprising:

• introducing betaine polyimidazole ligand including a zwitterionic moiety coated semiconductor nanocrystals to a biological sample;
• allowing the semiconductor nanocrystals to diffuse;
• collecting data from the semiconductor nanocrystals;
• and
• visualizing an image from the data.