Bright solid-state luminescence and high-temperature resistance of Ga-doped carbon dots with ultra-wideband white emission for light-emitting diodes

Abstract

Fluorescent CDs tend to undergo solid-state aggregation quenching in powder form. This is caused by the stacking of π–π conjugate structures and excessive resonant energy transfer. Moreover, various forms of N play an important role in white CDs suitable for LED applications. White, single-component, non-N-doped CDs have never been reported for LED application. In this study, to overcome this limitation, we developed Ga-doped CD powders containing no N element that exhibit ultra-wideband white emission in the range of 420–800 nm for LED applications and were able to resist solid-state aggregation quenching. Furthermore, the Ga-doped CD powders demonstrated excellent luminescence stability under high temperatures. Another strength of the Ga-doped CD powders is their large Stokes shift, where the peak center of white emission shifts from 550 nm to 650 nm under 365 nm excitation as the Ga doping concentration is adjusted from 0.05 to 0.6 (Ga : H₂O, mass ratio). The full width at half-maximum can reach 262 nm. Additionally, the Ga-doped CD powders exhibit good luminescence stability under long-time exposure to an air atmosphere. Their luminescent intensity retained 70%–74% of the initial values even after being left in natural placement for 100 days. Moreover, the Ga-doped CDs demonstrate afterglow features.