Light of carbon: Recent advancements of carbon dots for LEDs

LEDs have become the solid-state lighting devices of the century and played significant roles in relieving energy crisis. Thanks to their superior properties such as excellent photoluminescence properties, high stability and low toxicity, carbon dots (C-dots) contributed enormously to the recent advancements of LEDs. In this article, recent studies on the synthesis, photoluminescence mechanism and tuning of C-dots are comprehensively surveyed. Then recent advancements in the applications of C-dots as phosphors for LEDs construction including monochromatic and white LEDs are also discussed. Furthermore, the research progress of C-dots derived electroluminescent LEDs is also updated. Last, advantages, challenges, and perspectives on the future trends of C-dots based LEDs are highlighted.