Recent Advances of Carbon Dots with Afterglow Emission

• Published in: Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany) Germany), 2023-08, Vol.19 (31), p.e2207104-n/a
• Main Authors: Shi, Huixian, Wu, Yang, Xu, Jiahui, Shi, Huifang, An, Zhongfu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Afterglows; Biocompatibility; Carbon dots; delayed fluorescence; Display devices; Luminescence; Nanotechnology; Optical properties; persistent luminescence; Phosphorescence; Raw materials; Room temperature; room temperature phosphorescence; Toxicity
• ISSN: 1613-6810; 1613-6829
• DOI: 10.1002/smll.202207104

Carbon dots (CDs) have gradually become a new generation of nano‐luminescent materials, which have received extensive attention due to excellent optical properties, wide source of raw materials, low toxicity, and good biocompatibility. In recent years, there are many reports on the luminescent phenomenon of CDs, and great progress has been achieved. However,there are rarely systematic summaries on CDs with persistent luminescence. Here, a summary of the recent progress on persistent luminescent CDs, including luminous mechanism, synthetic strategies, property regulation, and potential applications, is given. First, a brief introduction is given to the development of CDs luminescent materials. Then, the luminous mechanism of afterglow CDs from room temperature phosphorescence (RTP), delayed fluorescence (DF), and long persistent luminescence (LPL) is discussed. Next, the constructed methods of luminescent CDs materials are summarized from two aspects, including matrix‐free self‐protected and matrix‐protected CDs. Moreover, the regulation of afterglow properties from color, lifetime, and efficiency is presented. Afterwards, the potential applications of CDs, such as anti‐counterfeiting, information encryption, sensing, bio‐imaging, multicolor display, LED devices, etc., are reviewed. Finally, an outlook on the development of CDs materials and applications is proposed. In this review, the long afterglow of carbon dots (including room temperature phosphorescence (RTP), delayed fluorescence (DF), and long persistent luminescence (LPL)) from the perspective of matrix‐free and matrix‐based carbon dots and their applications in the field of information encryption, anticounterfeiting, sensing, biological imaging, multicolor display, etc., are mainly summarized.