Dear Colleagues,

Quantum Dots (QDs), which were originally identified as tiny semiconductor nanoparticles (with a size of several nanometers), from the moment of their appearance in the literature in the mid-1980s, immediately occupied a very important place in nanoscience and nanotechnology. A special property that determined the success that QDs have enjoyed is the tunable fluorescence (or photoluminescence). The tunable fluorescence of QDs makes them uniquely suited to various applications. In particular, QDs turned out to be indispensable in bioscience and biotechnology, where they are used for fluorescent imaging of various bio-objects (from cells to micro RNA). Of course, fluorescent imaging is not the only application of QDs. They are widely used in CERS, the development of new lasers and ultrasensitive sensors, and many other fields.

However, the concept of a QD as a semiconductor particle has recently undergone a significant change after it turned out that the smallest particles of not only semiconductors but also some metals (such as Ag and Si) have the property of tunable fluorescence. A significant change in the study of QDs occurred with the discovery of carbon QDs, which, in contrast to semiconductor QDs, show low toxicity, have more stable fluorescence, and are significantly cheaper to produce. More recently, research has started to shift towards another new very promising object: graphene QDs.

This Special Issue of Nanomaterials will attempt to cover the most recent findings in QD science and applications. Studies that describe new synthesis methods, fabrication techniques and approaches, characterization techniques, materials as possible candidates for QDs, and properties of different QDs will be considered. Of course, applications of QDs in different fields of science and technology will be welcome.

Prof. Dr. Alexander Pyatenko
Guest Editor

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• quantum dot (QD)
• fluorescence
• photoluminescence
• carbon QDs
• graphene QDs
• bioscience
• biotechnology
• fluorescent imaging
• sensor
• bio application.