A Simple Hydrothermal Synthesis of Luminescent Carbon Quantum Dots from Different Molecular Precursors

Abstract

In this work,highly photoluminescent C-dots have been synthesised from different precursors such as sucrose, ascorbic acid, citric acid and their combinations under similar conditions to that of recently reported synthesis of C-dots from orange juice.The synthesized carbon nanoparticles have been characterized by XRD, FTIR, UV, and fluorescence measurements. The fluorescence quantum yields of carbon dots synthesized from different precursors have been compared to verify the suitability of C-dots for different applications. We have also thoroughly investigated the effect of excitation wavelength, pH, and electrolyte concentration on luminescent properties.