Fluorescent metal ion chemosensors via cation exchange reactions of complexes, quantum dots, and metal-organic frameworks.

Due to their wide range of applications and biological significance, fluorescent sensors have been an active research area in the past few years. In the present review, recent research developments on fluorescent chemosensors that detect metal ions via cation exchange reactions (transmetalation, metal displacement, or metal exchange reactions) of complexes, quantum dots, and metal-organic frameworks are described. These complex-based chemosensors might have a much better selectivity than the corresponding free ligands/receptors because of the shielding function of the filled-in metal ions. Moreover, not only the chemical structure of the ligands/receptors but also the identity of the central metal ions have a tremendous impact on the sensing performances. Therefore, sensing via cation exchange reactions potentially provides a new, simple, and powerful way to design fluorescent chemosensors.