Carbon Dots Conundrum: Structures, Properties and Application of Quasi-Zero Dimensional Materials
A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 8
Special Issue Editor
Interests: carbon materials; catalysts; nanoparticles; composites; bio-fuel; microwave-assisted pyrolysis; energy materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Carbon dots (CDs) represent a recently established class of quasi-zero-dimensional carbon-based nanomaterials with extraordinary physicochemical properties. Despite more than a decade of intensive research, the precise nature of carbon dots—including their core structure, surface chemistry, emissive states, and classification boundaries relative to graphene quantum dots, polymer dots, and molecular fluorophores—remains an open scientific conundrum. This Special Issue of Molecules, entitled “Carbon Dots Conundrum: Structures, Properties and Application of Quasi-Zero Dimensional Materials”, is facing these unresolved questions through a critical and interdisciplinary collection of original research articles and authoritative reviews.
The contributions systematically evaluate the structural heterogeneity of carbon dots, highlighting the roles of sp²/sp³ carbon domains, molecular fluorophore formation, heteroatom doping, and surface functionalization in governing optical, electronic, and chemical behavior. Particular emphasis is placed on photoluminescence mechanisms, including core-state versus surface-state emission, excitation-dependent fluorescence, and aggregation-induced effects, which remain central to both fundamental understanding and application-driven optimization.
Beyond structure–property relationships, this Special Issue explores scalable and sustainable synthetic strategies, including bottom-up molecular approaches, biomass-derived precursors, and green chemistry routes. These studies underscore how precursor selection, reaction pathways, and post-synthetic modification dictate reproducibility, quantum yield, stability, and functionality—key challenges hindering industrial translation.
Applications covered in this Special Issue span bioimaging, biosensing, photocatalysis, optoelectronics, energy conversion, environmental remediation, and antimicrobial technologies. Several contributions demonstrate how rational control of surface chemistry and electronic structure enables task-specific performance, while others critically assess limitations related to toxicity, long-term stability, and standardization.
Collectively, this Special Issue provides a coherent framework to reconcile conflicting models of carbon dot structure and emission, while offering forward-looking perspectives on characterization protocols, nomenclature harmonization, and application-driven design. By bridging fundamental chemistry with applied molecular science, it aims to clarify the carbon dots conundrum and to guide future research toward reproducible, mechanism-informed, and technologically viable quasi-zero-dimensional carbon nanomaterials.
Dr. Mattia Bartoli
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- carbon dots
- graphene quantum dots
- carbon nitride dots
- polymeric carbon dots
- fluorescence
- biomedical applications
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