Photoluminescence (PL) of carbon nanoparticles (CNP) has been corroborated with their surface functionalities and can be used as trigger-able nanoparticle tracking modality in vitro. A negatively charged CNP with high emission property was found to lose its PL after caging with positively charged macromolecules and correlated with the type of macromolecule used. Prepared caged carbons could regain their emission only through interaction with anionic surfactant molecules, mimicking anionic amphiphiles of endocytic membranes. This process could be verified by gel, spectroscopy techniques and in vitro analysis. It established the role of surface caging in deciding the extent of emission by CNPs and its use in generating switchable CNPs for intracellular tracking.

Macromolecularly "caged" carbon nanoparticles for intracellular trafficking via switchable photoluminescence

255th National Meeting (2018)

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