Self-passivated carbon dots derived from Bougainvillea spectabilis for photovoltaic application

Carbon dots (CD) derived from chemical sources require an additional input of passivation agent, which is not a requirement for the ones synthesized from natural sources. The CD show bright luminescence, predominantly in the blue region which are applicable in a wide range of applications. In the current work we have used the flowers of Bougainvillea spectabilis for synthesizing CD via solvothermal route. The derived CD displayed both excitation dependent and independent emission with a strong turquoise color. The dynamic light scattering measurement revealed a mean size of 10.30 nm while the transmission electron microscopy showed an average size of 9.81 nm. The quantum dot sensitized solar cell prepared using the CD showed a Voc of 0.62 V and a Jsc of 0.45 mA cm−2.