Fe3+-Catalyzed low-temperature preparation of multicolor carbon polymer dots with the capability of distinguishing D2O from H2O.

Optical nanosensors capable of distinguishing D2O from H2O are rarely reported. Herein, we explore a scalable synthetic route for multicolor carbon polymer dots (CPDs) by utilizing Fe3+-catalyzed oxidative polymerization at as low as 80 °C. Notably, the CPDs exhibit differential optical responses to H2O and D2O.