Fast Dynamic Visualizations in Microfluidics Enabled by Fluorescent Carbon Nanodots

Microfluidic systems have become a superior platform for explorations of fascinating fluidic physics at microscale as well as applications in biomedical devices, chemical reactions, drug delivery, etc. Exploitations of this platform are built upon the fundamental techniques of flow visualizations. However, the currently employed fluorescent materials for microfluidic visualization are far from satisfaction, which severely hinders their widespread applications. Here fluorescent carbon nanodots are documented as a game-changer, applicable in versatile fluidic environment for the visualization in microfluidics with unprecedented advantages. One of the fastest fluorescent imaging speeds up to 2500 frames per second under a normal contionous wave (CW) laser line is achieved by adopting carbon nanodots in microfluidics. Besides better visualizations of the fluid or interface, fluorescent carbon nanodots-based microparticles enable quantitative studies of high speed dynamics in fluids at microscale with a more than 90% lower cost, which is inaccessible by traditionally adopted fluorescent dye based seeding particles. The findings hold profound influences to microfluidic investigations and may even lead to revolutionary changes to the relevant industries.