Highly sensitive and selective Fe3+ fluorescence probes based on thermally activated delayed fluorescence materials.

Abstract

Iron ions play a significant role in the biological metabolism of the human body. Both the deficiency and excess of iron ions can lead to various diseases. Herein, two novel fluorescent probes, DMAC-BP-MD and DMAC-BPTAZ, were designed and synthesized for the detection of Fe3+ ions based on thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) emitters. Attributed to the formation of complexes and a competitive absorption mechanism, the two sensors demonstrate excellent selectivity and high sensitivity towards Fe3+ in a water/tetrahydrofuran (9 : 1, v/v) mixture. Among the two probes, DMAC-BP-MD achieves superior detection sensitivity with a lower limit of detection (LOD) of 2.45 × 10-6 mol L-1. This research contribution presents a novel molecular design strategy for high-performance fluorescent probes.