•A series of brightly luminescent, BF-cored complexes were synthesized from readily available precursors in high yield.•The molecule structures were based on the benzothiazole and benzoxazole backbones.•The emission maxima of these BF-cored complexes spanned 70 nm in the visible spectrum from 450 nm (blue) to 520 nm (green).•The photoluminescence quantum yields ranged from 0.16 to 0.8 in dichloromethane.•Chelating position shifting on the naphthalene ring result in large different optical properties.A series of brightly luminescent fluorine–boron cored complexes were synthesized from readily available precursors in high yield and were structurally characterized. The molecular structures were based on the benzothiazole and benzoxazole frameworks. The emission maxima of these fluorine–boron cored complexes spanned 70 nm in the visible spectrum from 450 nm (blue) to 520 nm (green). The photoluminescence quantum yields ranged from 0.16 to 0.8 in dichloromethane at room temperature. Altering the chelating position on the naphthalene ring provides a means to tailor the optical properties of the complexes.A series of brightly luminescent, fluorine–boron cored complexes were synthesized from readily available precursors and the mission maxima of these fluorine–boron complexes spanned 70 nm in the visible spectrum from 450 nm (blue) to 520 nm (green).

A fluorescence “turn-off” and color “turn-on” probe for late IB metal ions (Fe3+/Co2+/Ni2+/Cu2+/Zn2+) was developed based on rhodamine B. The probe was synthesized by condensation between rhodamine B and 8-hydroxyjulolidine-9-carboxaldehyde, which provided excellent selectivity function for late IB metal ions detection. It binds Cu2+ in a 1:1 stoichiometry in acetonitrile solution. This probe displays distinct color and fluorescence change upon the addition of late IB metal ions and little interference with other biologically relevant metal ions. Limit of detection for Cu2+, Fe3+, and Co2+ is higher than that of Zn2+ and Ni2+. In addition, the limit of detection toward Cu2+ is about 312 times lower than the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended level in drinking water.

Isomers based on the bisindolylmaleimide architecture were reported in this Letter. Introducing hydroxyl to this architecture lead to quenching the fluorescence of bisindolylmaleimide. The fluorescence was recovered with its hydroxyl group esterified. Ester group can be easily transformed to hydroxyl group by hydrolysis reaction. Thus, a toggle-switchable fluorescence, ‘off–on’ cycle can be established on the basis of reversible esterification/hydrolysis reaction.