Fluorescent film sensor for vapor-phase nitroaromatic explosives via monolayer assembly of oligo(diphenylsilane) on glass plate surfaces

A fluorescent film sensor was prepared by chemical assembly of oligo(diphenylsilane)s on a glass plate surface and was used for the detection of nitroaromatic compounds (NACs) in vapor phase. This design combines the advantages of fluorescent films based on single-layer chemistry and the signal amplification effect of conjugated polymers and provides an effective way to create novel fluorescence sensing films for NACs explosives. The advantages have been demonstrated experimentally by the super sensitive response of the above-mentioned film to the presence of trace amounts of NACs in vapor phase. Further experiments showed that the sensing process is reversible, and the commonly encountered interfering substances have no interference to the process. Fluorescence lifetime measurements revealed that the quenching is static in nature. The super sensitive response, and the reversibility and interference free of the sensing process, make the film a promising NACs sensor.