A simple fluorescent receptor selective for Mg2+

Abstract

A structurally simple fluorescent receptor (receptor 1) has been synthesized and was found to show a dramatic enhancement in its fluorescence emission upon complexation with Mg²⁺. This was maybe contributed to by the inhibition of the CN isomerization in the excited state. The experimental results show that the receptor was selective and sensitive towards Mg²⁺ in the presence of competing ions, with a low detection limit of 3.5 × 10⁻⁹ mol L⁻¹ (3σ).