Synthesis of Visible Light Excitable Carbon Dot Phosphor-Al₂ O₃ Hybrids for Anti-Counterfeiting and Information...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Photochemistry

Background:

• Synthesizing carbon dots with visible-light excitable room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) remains challenging.
• Existing RTP carbon dots often require solid-state conditions and are limited in substrate variety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel composite material for stable room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP).
• To explore multicolor emissions from carbon dots for advanced applications.

Main Methods:

• Calcination of green carbon dots (g-CDs) blended with aluminum hydroxide (Al(OH)3).
• Characterization of the resultant g-CDs@Al2O3 hybrid material's optical and stability properties.

Main Results:

• The g-CDs@Al2O3 composite exhibits blue fluorescence and green RTP emissions under 365 nm excitation.
• The material demonstrates exceptional stability in extreme acidic and basic conditions for 30 days.
• Multicolor RTP emissions (green and yellow) were observed under different light sources, enabling on/off switching.

Conclusions:

• The Al2O3 matrix enhances the RTP properties of g-CDs.
• The developed composite offers a straightforward route to stable, multicolor RTP carbon dots.
• Potential applications include anti-counterfeiting and information encryption.