A highly selective off–on fluorescent chemodosimeter for Hg2+ based on a anthracene–bis(phosphinesulfide) conjugate

A chemodosimeter Ph2P(S)NP(-S-CH2-anthracene)Ph 2 (L1), featuring the methylanthracenyl moiety covalently linked to one of the two S atoms of an S,S′- tetraphenyldithioimidodiphosphinate (L) unit exhibited good selectivity and sensitivity for Hg2+ in an aqueous environment. The chemical reaction involved differs from those reported in the literature for other Hg 2+ chemodosimeters: the binding of Hg2+ induces the cleavage of the PS-CH2 bond to form the stable neutral complex [HgL2] and an emissive anthracenyl derivative. The X-ray crystal structure of L1 is reporte