Synthesis, characterization, photophysical and oxygen-sensing properties of a novel europium(III) complex

In this paper, we report the synthesis, characterization, crystal structure, and photophysical properties of a novel Eu3+ complex of Eu(DBM)3IPD, where DBM = 1,3-diphenyl-propane-1,3-dione and IPD = 4-(1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthrolin-2-yl)-N,N-diphenylaniline. Its elementary application for oxygen-sensing application is also investigated by doping it into a silica matrix of MCM-41. Experimental data suggest that the 20 mg/g doped Eu(DBM)3IPD/MCM-41 system exhibits a high sensitivity of 3.6 towards molecular oxygen with a good linear relationship of R2 = 0.9987. In addition, the 20 mg/g doped Eu(DBM)3IPD/MCM-41 system owns a quick response of 8 s towards oxygen, along with its excellent atmosphere insensitivity and photobleaching resistance. All these results suggest that both Eu(DBM)3IPD and Eu(DBM)3IPD/MCM-41 systems are promising candidates for oxygen-sensing optical sensors.