A cyclometalated iridium(III) complex for selective luminescent detection of hydrogen sulfide

- A cyclometalated iridium(III) complex was for the first time developed as a probe for H2S based on cleavage of CO bonds.
- The iridium(III) complex can be used for sensing of H2S in the aqueous solution and in the gas phase.
- The iridium(III) complex has been applied in cell imaging.

We designed and synthesized a cyclometalated iridium(III) complex for luminescent detection of H2S in the aqueous solution and in the gas phase. The iridium(III) complex was very weakly emissive in the aqueous solution, while strong green emission with a 120-fold enhancement was observed upon addition of H2S. For sensing of H2S in the gas phase, the emission changed from yellow to green. The sensing process was studied by HRMS and 1H NMR and we found cleavage of CO bonds was responsible for the selective detection. Further application in the cell imaging was also studied.

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