A highly selective and sensitive perylenebisimide-based fluorescent PET sensor for Al3+ determination in MeCN

A novel 'turn-on' fluorescent probe with perylene tetracarboxylic bisimide (PBI) as the fluorophore and di(2-(salicylideneamino))ethylamine (DSEA) as the metal ion receptor was designed. The capability of the prepared probe to detect metal ions was evaluated by the changes in its emission intensity. The probe demonstrated a considerable emission enhancement (ca. 110-fold) in the presence of Al3+ in MeCN with high selectivity and sensitivity. Furthermore, the considerably 'off-on' fluorescence response concomitantly led to the apparent color change from colorless to brilliant yellow, which could also be identified by naked eye easily under UV lamp.