A dual-functional fluorescent sensor based on diarylethene for Zn2+ and Al3+ in different solvents

Abstract

A novel diarylethene derivative containing a purine unit has been successfully synthesized. It not only exhibited multiple controllable fluorescent switching properties with the stimuli of metal ions, and UV/vis lights, but also showed high selectivity and sensitivity to Zn2+ and Al3+ in THF and methanol, respectively. In THF, its fluorescence intensity increased by 18-fold and the fluorescent color changed from dark orange to green with the addition of Zn2+. Nevertheless, its fluorescent intensity enhanced 98-fold and the fluorescent color changed from dark orange to bright green in methanol with the addition of Al3+. Based on the fluorescent behaviors, a logic gate was constructed with the emission intensity at 545 nm as output signal, the UV/vis lights and Zn2+/EDTA as input signals. Furthermore, this sensor could also be used to detect Zn2+ and Al3+ in practical samples with high accuracy.