Nitrogen-doped carbon nanodots (CDs) are synthesized by one-step femtosecond laser ablation of graphite powder in aminotoluene at room temperature. The as-prepared CDs have the average diameter of 2.87 nm and possess an excitation-independent emission covering nearly the whole visible light region at a single excitation wavelength. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis indicate that there are a huge number of multiple oxygen groups and amine groups on the surface of the CDs. As their different fluorescence peaks originated from different emission surface groups on the nanodots show different pH dependence, these CDs can be used for ratiometric pH sensing. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.