Synthesis and fluorescence properties of Sm-2-oxo-quinoline-3-carbaldehyde-isonicotinyl hydrazone decorated with 1,10-phenanthroline

•A novel hydrazone ligand based on quinoline was designed and synthesized.•The reason for no characteristic fluorescence of Sm(III) complex was discussed.•A novel ternary Sm(III) complex was synthesized by introducing 1,10-phenanthrolin.•The ternary complex showed efficient luminescence through an energy-transfer pathway.

A novel ligand called 2-oxo-quinoline-3-carbaldehyde-isonicotinyl hydrazone (L) was designed and synthesized, and its Sm(III) complex was successfully prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction. According to investigation, the Sm(III) complex didn’t exhibit characteristic fluorescence due to the mismatching energy between L and Sm(III) ion. However, when the complex was reacted with 1,10-phenanthrolin (Phen) as a secondary ligand, a novel ternary Sm(III) complex was synthesized, which showed efficient luminescence activity through an energy-transfer pathway. These results indicated that 1,10-phenanthrolin was an excellent sensitizer to Sm(III) ion.

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