Hot Electron Induced Cathodic Electrochemiluminescence at Disposable Screen Printed Carbon Electrodes

Hot electron induced cathodic electrochemiluminescence (ECL) was observed at screen printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs) during pulse polarization. The thin insulating film resulted from the printing inks was found to be suitable for generating hot electrons, which can further be converted to hydrated electrons and induce the subsequent luminescence. Compared with disposable Al/Al2O3 electrode, SPCEs show more stable and reproducible ECL in a wider pH range without background emission. A sensitive ECL method for determination of quercetin is proposed. The detection limit is 8.0×10−10 mol L−1(S/N=3), which is two magnitudes lower than that of common ECL method.