A homochiral lead(II) double-stranded helical coordination network as luminescent sensor for iron(III)

Abstract A new Pb(II)-based coordination polymer, namely, [Pb(bib)(NO3)2]n (1) (bib = 1,4-bis(imidazol-1-yl)benzene), has been successfully synthesized and fully characterized. Compound 1 features a rare homochiral double-stranded helical structure, which with uniform handedness are further bridged each other by Pb-O weak interactions into a 2D supramolecular network. Moreover, detailed luminescent investigations reveal that compound 1 is a effective luminescent sensor, which can detect and quantify Fe3+ ions in aqueous solution with high sensitivity and selectivity quenching effect. The possible luminescent quenching mechanisms have been proposed.