Abstract: Undergraduate chemistry education is currently undergoing a transition from a model focused primarily on knowledge transmission to one that places equal emphasis on frontier-oriented learning and the cultivation of comprehensive abilities. However, conventional laboratory courses remain largely centered on classical reactions and analytical methods, providing students with limited direct exposure to modern chemical research practices and international scientific advances. To address this issue, we take quantum dots, highlighted by the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, as a representative example to design and implement a comprehensive laboratory course for senior undergraduates. The course is centered on the preparation of semiconductor nanocrystals, specifically CdSe quantum dots, and systematically integrates key steps including precursor preparation, hot-injection synthesis, purification, and post-synthetic ligand exchange. Through these processes, students are guided to understand the relationships among material structures, reaction conditions, and material properties, as well as fundamental concepts such as quantum confinement, nucleation and growth mechanisms, and surface and interface chemical regulation. A hybrid teaching model combining classroom discussion with laboratory practice is adopted, enabling students to develop experimental skills while organically connecting core concepts from inorganic chemistry, physical chemistry, and materials chemistry with observable experimental phenomena. Based on evaluations of experimental performance and questionnaire feedback students generally reported a significant enhancement in their understanding of frontier materials chemistry, interdisciplinary analytical ability, and research-oriented thinking. The teaching framework proposed in this study provides a feasible pathway for the systematically translation of cutting-edge research outcomes into undergraduate laboratory education and may serve as a reference for the development and optimization of related courses.

Key words: Quantum dots, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Undergraduate comprehensive chemistry experiment, Hot-injection synthesis, Ligands exchange