Tetraphenylethene functionalized rhodamine chemosensor for Fe3+ and Cu2+ ions in aqueous media

A tetraphenylethylene based chemosensor RbTPE showing an aggregation-induced emission effect has been successfully designed and synthesized. The chemosensor RbTPE exhibits remarkably absorbance enhancement and color change from colorless to purple for Cu2+, and shows significant “turn-on” fluorescence accompanied with red emission upon binding with Fe3+.