The behaviour of semiconducting graphene quantum dots (GQDs), as good candidates for various biological carrier applications and optical sensing, are necessary to be studied under various conditions. In this study, GQD models were generated according to the geometrical and chemical specifications of synthesized GQDs to achieve the most realistic models. The GQDs’ bandgap and distribution of their electric surface charges were obtained using computational chemistry method. Finite element analysis was conducted on pristine and defective GQDs to study Young and shear modulus. Buckling load and resonant frequency modes of GQDs were calculated analytically and demonstrated under various boundary conditions. The dimension of GQDs has an average of 3.5 ± 0.4 nm, with an interlayer spacing of 0.36–0.40 nm. Computational chemistry studies revealed the characteristic zero-band-gap nature of graphene. Finite element studies showed that the by introducing the inevitable dislocation, mono atom vacancy and Stone–Wales defects to GQD models, their mechanical properties reduces to approach data from experimental investigations, whereas an increase in the number of layers does not influence the obtained results significantly.

Nanostructured ZnO materials have been studied extensively because of their functional properties. This paper presents a composite material of zinc oxide quantum dots (ZnO QDs) and porous carbon using a one-step carbonization process. The direct carbonization of a metal–organic complex generates mesostructured porous carbon with a homogeneous distribution of ZnO QDs. The structural and morphological properties are investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The resulting ZnO QDs@porous carbon composite delivers a high specific capacity of 990 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1, 357 mAh g−1 at 2 A g−1, and high reversibility when evaluated as an anode for lithium ion batteries.

In recent years, special attention of energy researchers has been paid to application of polymer–carbon dots composite in energy storage systems. In this work, for the first time, we introduced a combination of polyaniline, carbon dots, polypyrrole and graphene as high performance supercapacitor. Synergistic effect of conductive polymers combined with specific properties of graphene and carbon dots improved the electrochemical performance of supercapacitor. Carbon dots was prepared from carrot juice hydrothermally as a biomass carbon source and polyaniline–carbon dots was synthesized via in-situ polymerization. Electrochemical performance of polyaniline with different carbon dots content was investigated and nanocomposite of polyaniline with 10 wt% carbon dots was selected to mix with polypyrrole–graphene to obtain a high potential window supercapacitor. The as-prepared composite was characterized by several spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. The electrochemical properties of this electrode were studied by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques. A polyaniline–carbon dots (10%)/polypyrrole–graphene has showed the maximum specific capacitance of 396 F g− 1. Value of specific capacity remained at 62% under the current density of 5 A g− 1.

We report the use of carrot, a new and inexpensive biomaterial source, for preparing high quality carbon dots (CDs) instead of semi-conductive quantum dots for bioimaging application. The as-derived CDs possessing down and up-conversion photoluminescence features were obtained from carrot juice by commonly used hydrothermal treatment. The corresponding physiochemical and optical properties were investigated by electron microscopy, fluorescent spectrometry, and other spectroscopic methods. The surfaces of obtained CDs were highly covered with hydroxyl groups and nitrogen groups without further modification. The quantum yield of as-obtained CDs was as high as 5.16%. The cell viability of HaCaT cells against a purified CD aqueous solution was higher than 85% even at higher concentration (700 μg mL−1) after 24 h incubation. Finally, CD cultured cells exhibited distinguished blue, green, and red colors, respectively, during in vitro imaging when excited by three wavelength lasers under a confocal microscope. Offering excellent optical properties, biocompatibility, low cytotoxicity, and good cellular imaging capability, the carrot juice derived CDs are a promising candidate for biomedical applications.