Exploring the gelation and AIE properties of a tripodal acylhydrazone-based probe: turn-on Zn(II) sensing in HEPES buffer.

Two -symmetric acylhydrazone-based AIE active probes, TRI-QUI and TRI-NAP, were synthesized with different peripheral substituents. The probe containing a quinoline moiety in the periphery displayed a selective turn-on response towards Zn in HEPES buffer, with a calculated detection limit of 6.45 μM. The probe TRI-QUI was also identified as a supergelator as it formed a gel in DMSO-HO (2 : 3, v/v) with a minimum gelation concentration of 0.5 mg mL. The gelator could interact with various metal ions or anions in the gel phase. Furthermore, the gelator could encapsulate small molecules like methyl orange and bromophenol blue, making the probe a multifunctional smart material.