Advances in preparation and biomedical applications of fluorescent carbon quantum dots

Carbon quantum dots are a class of nanomaterials with excellent fluorescence properties and high biocompatibility. They are widely used in many fields and are currently hot research materials. In this paper, different methods for the synthesis of carbon quantum dots, as well as recent advances in the performance of carbon quantum dots such as fluorescence, chemiluminescence, electrochemiluminescence, peroxidase-like activity, and toxicity, are described. Moreover, an overview of carbon quantum dots in biomedical applications such as biosensing, bioimaging, and drug delivery is also provided.