Carbon quantum dot-based sensors for food safety

By taking advantages of the remarkable fluorescent properties, simple preparation strategy, good biocompatibility, and easy functionalization, carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have emerged as promising materials for the application in the sensing, particularly for the food safety. Although great progress has been achieved in recent years, the low selectivity and sensitivity have severely hindered their extensive application as food samples are complex in compositions that may cause interferences. Therefore, more efforts are demanded to contribute to overcoming these issues. Previous researches have demonstrated that the sensing performance of CQDs is strongly correlated with the composites, in which the CQDs that combined with other materials to generate nanostructured composites with distinctive properties could exhibit excellent sensing performance. This article introduces and compares various CQD-based sensors and reviews their related sensing applications as a novel material in food components analysis and food safety inspection, including the fluorescence sensing, electrochemical sensing, and photochemical sensing. It is highly expected to afford a crucial guidance for the rational design of more advanced CQD-based sensors and boosting their applications in food safety.