| Citation: |
Seobin Park, Sejeong Seo, Jae Eun Kim, Hyeonjin Park, Woosung Kwon, Im Doo Jung. Three-dimensional encrypted printing of carbon dots via meniscus-guided microprinting[J]. Materials Lab. doi: 10.54227/mlab.20250007
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Three-dimensional encrypted printing of carbon dots via meniscus-guided microprinting
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Abstract
Carbon dots (CDs) offer a promising alternative for optoelectronic applications, featuring multicolor emission, biocompatibility, and low-cost synthesis from abundant precursors. The integration of CDs into intricately designed structures via micro-scale three-dimensional (3D) printing holds great potential for enhancing their optical and mechanical functionalities. This study presents a novel micro-printing strategy for achieving CD fluorescence by utilizing a CD-filled polymer ink composed of CDs, hydroxypropyl cellulose, and N, N-dimethylformamide (DMF). The ink forms polymer composites with uniformly dispersed CDs through the rapid evaporation of DMF at the micro-meniscus. As a result, the printed structures exhibit stable fluorescence under 365 nm UV light and enable continuous stacking and encrypted patterning of various 3D architectures. The findings of this study are anticipated to contribute to the development of a versatile and scalable manufacturing approach for biocompatible, multicolor fluorescent 3D optoelectronic systems.
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Keywords:
- 3D printing /
- Carbon dots /
- fluorescence /
- information encryption /
- Meniscus-guided micro printing
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References
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Seobin Park, Sejeong Seo, Jae Eun Kim, Hyeonjin Park, Woosung Kwon, Im Doo Jung. Three-dimensional encrypted printing of carbon dots via meniscus-guided microprinting[J]. Materials Lab. doi: 10.54227/mlab.20250007
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Figure 1.
Morphological characterizations of the CDs. TEM images of a O-CD and b N-CD. High-resolution TEM images of c O-CD and d N-CD. e DLS size-distribution curves of the CDs. f Raman spectra of the CDs. g XRD patterns of the CDs.
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Figure 2.
Optical analyses of the CDs. a ABS spectra of the CDs. b PL emission spectra of the CDs. PL emission contour maps of c O-CD and d N-CD. EX and EM in the axis titles refer to excitation and emission, respectively.
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Figure 3.
Meniscus-guided micro printing of the CD-filled ink and printing techniques. a Schematic of printing and fluorescence in printed patterns under UV light. b-d. Various printing techniques for printing of b line, c pillar, d interconnect and their fluorescence images. e-g Printing applications for writing a plane figures and alphabets using continuous layer-by-layer printing method.
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Figure 5.
a EDS images of the elemental mapping in the printed structures. b energy spectrum results of CD-HPC architectures. c, d Rheological properties of CD-HPC inks with different HPC concentration.
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Figure 6.
Optical and SEM images of different printed structures. a, b wall structure printed through continuous layer deposition, c letter “CD” with multi-layer printing, d Single-arch interconnect structure.
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Figure 4.
a Optical images of the O- and N-CD-filled inks under daylight and 365 nm UV light. b Optical images of the printed CD ink and comparison of fluorescence colors of the pillars filled with O- and N-CD. c SEM image of the letter “O” and “N”. d CIE chromaticity diagram of color coordinates of O- and N-CD fluorescence colors.
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Figure 7.
Printing application using pillar structures. a Side-view optical image comparing the brightness at different pillar heights. b Optical side-view image of pillars arranged at varying intervals (p1: 20 μm, p2: 17.5 μm, p3: 15 μm, p4: 12.5 μm, p5: 11.25 μm, p6: 10 μm). c-e. Fluorescence images of different patterns c heart, d fruit, e Eiffel tower. f Schematic of information encryption method using CD-filled pillars and pure ink pillars under 365nm UV light. g Encrypted image of the text “UNIST”.
