Dawson-type polyoxometalates photosensitized with carbon dots for photocatalytic reduction of silver ions

Carbon dots (CDs) are carbon-based nanoparticles (NPs) displaying remarkable light-harvesting properties. In this work, we have investigated for the first time the possibility to use CDs to photosensitize polyoxometalates (POMs). For this purpose, we have thus engineered positively charged carbon dots allowing electrostatic interactions with anionic Dawson-type POMs. Following the formation of these new POM-CDs complexes, an efficient photoinduced electron transfer between photoexcited CDs and POMs allows the reduced POM to perform reduction reactions. The reduction of silver ions into silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) has been chosen as a model reaction.