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Fig. 1 | Journal of Nanobiotechnology

Fig. 1

From: Small molecules derived carbon dots: synthesis and applications in sensing, catalysis, imaging, and biomedicine

Fig. 1

General synthesis methods of CDs. Bottom up approach: CDs are synthesized from smaller carbon units (small organic molecules) via applying energy (electrochemical/chemical, thermal, laser, etc.). The source molecules are getting ionized, dissociated, evaporated or sublimated and then condensed to form CDs. Top down approach: CDs are synthesized by transformation of larger carbon structures into ultra-small fragments via applying energy (thermal, mechanical, chemical, ultrasonic, etc.)

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