Lecture 2

Carbon Quantum Dots

Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2023

The 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Moungi G. Bawendi, Louis E. Brus and
Alexei I. Ekimov for the discovery and synthesis of quantum dots.

Quantum dots are semiconductor nanocrystals whose properties can be changed by their
physical size.

While Brus and Ekimov independently created quantum dots and linked their nanometre size to
their observed optical quantum properties, Bawendi developed the synthesis process, obtaining
nanoparticles of uniform size and quality.
 Carbon quantum dots

 A new kind of carbon allotrope, carbon quantum dots (CQDs), carbon dots (CDs, C-dots, or CDots), or carbon
nanodots are nearly spherical, carbon nanoparticles with a diameter below 10 nm.

 Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are generally defined as a fascinating class of carbon nanoparticles that mainly
consist of carbons with sizes around 10 nm.

 CQDs have both electronic properties of carbon materials and optical properties of quantum dots .

 They were discovered in 2004 and got their name in 2006 .

 CQDs are fluorescent nanomaterials (emission of light which is caused by the irradiation of a material with
other light).
CQDs having unique properties:

1- Including excellent sunlight harvesting ability

2 - Depending on synthesis methods, functional groups on the

surface can be modified to further tune the photoluminescence
of CQDs.
Xu et al. discovered fluorescent CQDs by accident while purifying single-
walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) .

There have now been other alternative synthesis strategies for producing
CQDs that have been found.

This research is primarily concerned with easy, cost-effective, size

adjustable, and large-scale methodologies for synthesizing CQDs that
have improved functions and can be produced in a wide range of
compositions and structural arrangements.
Quantum dots are nanoscale man-made crystals that have the ability to
convert a spectrum of light into different colors. Each dot emits a different
color depending on its size.
 The dots changing the world

You will never see one with your naked eye or through a conventional
optical microscope, but quantum dots are changing the world.
Thanks to their remarkable superpower properties, scientists think
they will soon be used in everything from light bulbs to the imaging
of cancer cells and in the design of next-generation ultra-efficient
solar cells.

Working in this sub-microscopic world is Quantum Solutions, a KAUST-

incubated developer and manufacturer of quantum dot materials
launched in 2017. The startup originated out of the KAUST Hikma
Accelerator and has gone on to receive seed funding from KAUST's
venture capital arm, the KAUST Innovation Fund.

Quantum Solutions co-founder Lutfan Sinatra works in the startup's lab on quantum dot materials. File photo.
Quantum dots are now widely employed, for example,

1. in computer and television screens

2. in biochemistry to track cells, and medicine to identify tumor tissue within
the body.

The discoveries of this year’s Chemistry Nobel Prize Laureates have covered
the way for advancements in the field of nanotechnology and still have
outcomes not just on the wider research community but also on our society,
given the wide applicability of quantum dots.
 Since CQDs were first discovered by Xu et al., in 2004, they have been widely used in
many fields such as fluorescent sensing, cell imaging, and optoelectronic devices due
to their excellent optical properties, simple preparation process and low biological
toxicity.

 Up to now, the synthetic methods involving but not limited to prepare CQDs :
1.Hydrothermal,
2.Microwave-assisted ,
3.Pyrolysis
4.Electrochemical methods