Researchers from VŠB-TUO have participated in a breakthrough discovery concerning the photoluminescent properties of carbon dots (CDs), published these days in the prestigious journal Small. Scientists from the CEET Nanotechnology Centre and the national supercomputing centre IT4Innovations, together with colleagues from CATRIN at Palacký University, have discovered that when irradiated with light, carbon dots produce magnetically active polarons, which can then be used for light-activated hydrogen peroxide production.
The aim of the research was to investigate mainly the photophysical and photocatalytic properties of the carbon dots. These are nanoscopic carbon-based particles that are non-toxic, have a wide range of applications and can be easily prepared. “The presence of magnetic polarons was revealed by experiments carried out using electron paramagnetic resonance. Subsequently, thanks to advanced quantum chemical calculations, we have explained how polarons can arise in carbon dot structures,” explained one of the authors of the paper, Michal Otyepka.
It is the magnetic polarons, specially bound states of the electron, that have proven to be key in the photoproduction of hydrogen peroxide, a versatile compound with a wide range of applications in healthcare, environmental remediation and energy. According to the authors of the study, the ability of carbon dots to convert light into catalytically active magnetic polarons could bring major advances in the use of these eco-friendly nanomaterials, particularly in the field of photocatalysis and solar-to-chemical energy conversion technologies. The study thus represents a significant step forward in the understanding of CDs and their potential in photoinduced chemical reactions.
The results of the research were published in a paper entitled Magnetic Polaron States in Photoluminescent Carbon Dots Enable Hydrogen Peroxide Photoproduction.