Study on the chiroptical properties of carbon dots based on citric acid and formamide with addition of various chiral substances

Stepanidenko E.A., Vedernikova A.A., Mitroshin A.М., Arefina I.А., Parfenov, P.S., Cherevkov S.A., Ushakova, E.V.

For Russian citation (Opticheskii Zhurnal):

Степаниденко Е.А., Ведерникова А.А., Митрошин А.М., Арефина И.А., Парфенов П.С., Черевков С.А., Ушакова Е.В. Исследование хироптических свойств углеродных точек, полученных из лимонной кислоты и формамида с добавлением хиральных соединений // Оптический журнал. 2024. Т. 91. № 6. С. 108–120. http://doi.org/10.17586/1023-5086-2024-91-06-108-120

Stepanidenko E.A., Vedernikova A.A., Mitroshin A.M., Arefina I.A., Parfenov P.S., Cherevkov S.A., Ushakova E.V. Study on the chiroptical properties of carbon dots based on citric acidand formamide with addition of various chiral substances [in Russian] // Opticheskii Zhurnal. 2024. V. 91. № 6. P. 108–120. http://doi.org/10.17586/1023-5086-2024-91-06-108-120

For citation (Journal of Optical Technology):

Abstract:

Subject of study. Luminescent carbon nanoparticles (carbon dots), based on citric acid, formamide and various chiral molecules. Aim of study. Establishing the influence of chiral molecules used in the synthesis of carbon dots on optical transitions in the long-wavelength spectral region and the formation of the circular dichroism signal of nanoparticles. Method. The carbon dot samples were synthesized by two methods: (i) a one-step solvothermal synthesis of carbon dots from citric acid,
formamide and various chiral molecules, (ii) a two-step method involving the solvothermal synthesis of achiral carbon dots from citric acid and formamide with subsequent surface treatment with L-cysteine. Absorption and luminescence spectroscopy methods were used to study the chemical structure and optical properties of carbon dots. The chiroptical properties of the obtained samples were studied using circular dichroism spectroscopy. Main results. By adding various chiral molecules to a mixture of precursors used in a one-step synthesis, it was possible to fabricate carbon dots with different chemical compositions, in particular, with different surface groups and different types of emission centers in the spectral region of 350–700 nm. It has been shown that in the process of onestep synthesis, the use of L-phenylglycine and L-tryptophan leads to the formation of nanoparticles with optical transitions in both short- and long-wavelength regions of the spectrum. It has been established that the addition of L-glutathione during the one-step synthesis causes the formation of carbon dots with short-wavelength emission, whereas the addition of L-cysteine causes no changes in the emission of citric acid and formamide-based achiral carbon dots. It has been shown that the optical properties of chiral carbon dots obtained by a two-step synthesis method using L-cysteine did not change compared to the achiral carbon dots synthesized from citric acid and formamide. In the circular dichroism spectra of all samples, a signal at around 250 nm was observed due to derivatives of the used chiral precursors, attached to the surface of nanoparticles, regardless of the method of their preparation. Practical significance. Chiral carbon dots are promising in biomedicine as sensors, luminescent biomarkers, etc., because they are biocompatible and non-toxic. The results obtained in this work will serve as the basis for the further fabrication and investigation of chiral carbon nanoparticles with long-wavelength luminescence.

Keywords:

carbon dots, long-wavelength photoluminescence, circular dichroism, chirality

Acknowledgements:

this work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, project № 22-13-00294

OCIS codes: 160.1585, 160.2540, 300.2530

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