A Functional Zn(II) Metallacycle Formed from an N‑Heterocyclic Carbene Precursor: A Molecular Sensor for Selective Recognition of Fe³⁺ and IO₄^– Ions

We have reported the synthesis and structural characterization of a unique Zn­(II) metallacycle (1) and its utilization as a fluorescent probe for the shape-specific selective recognition (turn-off) of Fe3+ and IO4– ions. The relevant Stern–Volmer graphs indicate that the recognitions of Fe3+ and IO4– ions are examples of diphasic and monophasic quenchings, respectively. The title metallacycle has been prepared by the reaction of a novel N-heterocyclic carbene precursor, 1,3-bis­(2,6-diisopropyl-4-(pyridin-4-yl)­phenyl)-1H-imidazol-3-ium chloride/bromide (L), and zinc­(II) chloride salt. Notably, the ligand itself did not show any type of recognition for any ions. DFT calculations were performed on L and metallacycle 1 using the geometric parameters, obtained from their single-crystal X-ray diffraction data, to understand the electronic structures of the ligand and macrocycle. The detection limit for the recognition of the Fe3+ ion was determined to be 2.5 × 10–6 mol/L, and that for IO4– ion was found to be 6.3 × 10–5 mol/L.