Controllable size-selective method to prepare graphene quantum dots from graphene oxide

Abstract

We demonstrated one-step method to fabricate two different sizes of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) through chemical cutting from graphene oxide (GO), which had many advantages in terms of simple process, low cost, and large scale in manufacturing with higher production yield comparing to the reported methods. Several analytical methods were employed to characterize the composition and morphology of the resultants. Bright blue luminescent GQDs were obtained with a produced yield as high as 34.8%. Moreover, how the different sizes affect fluorescence wavelength mechanism was investigated in details.