Development of carbon dots for security inks

Carbon Dots (CDs) emerged as metal-free promising nanoparticles creating new opportunities in optoelectronics, bio-applications, catalysis, sensing, security applications, etc. However, a profound understanding of the physical and chemical properties still pose a significant challenge. The origin of optical properties and emission tunning is not straightforward. The fundamental problem of this thesis work is towards elucidating the relationship between the structural/chemical features and the optical properties of CDs. This thesis also addresses a daily problem: Authentication of valuable papers such as diplomas, banknotes, passports, etc. to prevent counterfeiting. Therefore, CD`s developed in this thesis was evaluated in inks and binders towards developing photostable optical tags. The documents were authenticated by measuring or reading these tags with special optical sensors or lamps.