Advancement in science and technology of carbon dot-polymer hybrid composites: a review

The serendipitous discovery of carbon dots has been added as a new domain of interest for materials scientists due to their extraordinary photo-physical attributes and long-term colloidal stability. This domain was more nurtured when carbon dots meet macromolecular chains. Carbon dot confined polymer matrices have diversified because of their ease of fabrication and applications in sensing, optoelectronics, semiconductors, molecular delivery, and various commercial aspects. Most promisingly, very small amounts of carbon dots have a over-the-top synergistic outcome in the presence of macromolecular systems. This review encompasses the synthesis of carbons dots, their physical properties, various fabrication strategies of polymer-carbon dots nanocomposites and applications.