Formation and Fluorescent Mechanism of Multiple Color Emissive Carbon Dots from o‐Phenylenediamine

Carbon dots (CDs) have received considerable attention in many application areas owing to their unique optical properties and potential applications; however, the fluorescent mechanism is an obstacle to their applications. Herein, three‐color emissive CDs are prepared from single o‐phenylenediamine (oPD) by regulating the ratio of ethanol and dimethylformamide (DMF). Fluorescent mechanism of these CDs is proposed as molecular state fluorescence. Reaction intermediates are identified using liquid chromatrography–mass spectroscopy (LC–MS) and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra. 1H‐Benzo[d]imidazole (BI), 2,3‐diaminophenazine (DAP), and 5,14‐dihydroquinoxalino[2,3‐b] phenazine (DHQP) are proposed to be the fluorophores of blue, green, and red emissive CDs by comparing their optical properties. As per the LC–MS and 1H‐NMR analysis, DHQP with red emission tends to form from DAP and oPD in pure ethanol. By adding DMF, BI formation is enhanced and DHQP formation is suppressed. The prepared CDs exhibit green emission with DAP. When the DMF amount is >50%, BI formation is considerably promoted, resulting in DAP formation being suppressed. BI with blue emission then turns into the fluorophore of CDs. This result provides us an improved understanding of the fluorescent mechanism of oPD‐based CDs, which guides us in designing the structure and optical properties of CDs. Multiple‐color emissive CDs are prepared from o‐phenylenediamine. The fluorophores are regulated by tuning the ratio of DMF and ethanol. The benzimidazole, 2,3‐diaminophenazine, and 5,14‐dihydroquinoxalino[2,3‐b] phenazine are identified as fluorophores for blue, green, and red emissive CDs by the optical properties, liquid chromatrography–mass spectroscopy and 1H NMR spectra. Additionally, CDs exhibit much better photostability than the corresponding molecules.