A highly emissive boranil-pyrene hybrid for latent fingerprint visualization

Abstract

We report the synthesis of a boranil–pyrene-based probe and its application for fluorescent visualization of latent fingerprints (LFPs) via a binder-free powder dusting technique. Fingerprints were successfully developed on a range of porous and non-porous surfaces, revealing clear and intact level 1–2 details. The developed LFPs exhibited excellent stability for up to 100 days, and fingerprints aged for 10 days were also effectively visualized. This work demonstrates a simple, rapid, and straightforward method that offers a promising alternative to conventional fingerprint detection techniques.