Multifunctional carbon dots in nanomaterial surface modification: A descriptive review

The surface properties of nanomaterials are an important consideration in most scientific and technological applications. Several methodologies can maneuver these properties while surface modification is the most common technique. Carbon Dots (CDs) are viable competitive materials for their pacific environment, chemical inertness, tunable photoluminescence, low cost, eco-friendliness, biocompatibility, schematic surface functionalization, and sophisticated utilization in nanomaterial’s surface modification. The nanoparticle surface attribute is modified for a specific purpose to use in several applications by dint of the tunable properties of CDs. Multifunctional CDs have a great potential to replace traditionally toxic and costly quantum dots through surface modification. This review presents how multifunctional CDs conjugated with other nanoparticles take an active part in medicine and biomedical fields with chemical and physical collaborations. Moreover, the basics of conjugate formation by different chemical and physical interactions of functional molecules are appraised from multiple perspectives. This article also describes different modification mechanisms followed by properties of the modified nano-conjugates. The surface modification affects fluorescence quantum yields, complexation potential, fluorescent coloring, and quenching capabilities. Resultant-modified nanoconjugates are powerful surfaces for drug delivery, biosensing, bioimaging, analysis, and therapeutic methods. Finally, the most fruitful current challenges and further possibilities are discussed in the conclusion section. Copyright © 2023 The Author(s).