Fabrication of carbon quantum dots and their application for efficient detecting Ru(bpy)32+ in the solution

Carbon quantum dots (CDs) with an average size of less than 10 nm were prepared by ionic liquid-assisted electrochemical exfoliation of graphite electrode, and developed as photoluminescence (PL) and electrochemiluminescence (ECL) probes for efficient detecting Ru(bpy)32+ in the solution based on the quenching of the PL emission of CDs and enhanced ECL of Ru(bpy)32+, respectively. The PL and ECL probes exhibited a detection limit of 0.72 and 0.43 μM, respectively. The PL and ECL properties of CDs and Ru(bpy)32+ will provide a new route to study the novel materials and broaden the use of them in analyte detection.