A novel fluorescent nano-sensor for specific antibiotic drug based on surface modification of CdTe/ZnS quantum dots with a biopolymer

A novel optical nano-sensor for specific antibiotic drug(A) was prepared by modifying the surface of CdTe/ZnS QDs with a biopolymer via a facile method. It was found that the fluorescence intensity of the novel nano-sensor at 520 nm (excitation at 375 nm) was selectively quenched in the presence of trace amounts of A. In this method, a simple, highly sensitive, selective and rapid analytical approach was used for the determination of A in the concentration range of 9.14 × 10-9 mol L-1-7.23 × 10-6 mol L-1 with a detection limit of 2.74 × 10-9 mol L-1.Also, the prepared nano-sensor was characterized by fluorescence spectroscopy, UV–Vis spectrophotometry, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR).