Tuning Sensing Efficacy of Oligo(phenylenevinylene) Based Chromogenic Probes: Effect of Alkyl Substituents on Metal Ion Detection at Micelle‐Water Interface

In this work, we conducted a comparative analysis of the metal ion sensing capabilities of two pyridine‐end oligo p‐phenylenevinylene compounds featuring different alkyl substituents (−C 4 H 9 and −C 16 H 33 ) within a micelle medium. Our findings revealed a correlation between the positioning of the probe molecules within the micelle and the length of the alkyl chains, impacting their self‐assembly tendencies and optical characteristics. The compound with shorter alkyl chains demonstrated a superior affinity towards Hg 2+ ions, whereas exposure to the compound with longer alkyl substituent resulted in a color‐changing response with both Cu 2+ and Hg 2+ ions. Intriguingly, the sensitivity towards Hg 2+ ions heightened with increasing alkyl chain length. This trend persisted in non‐polar solvents like THF. The capacity to modulate sensing efficacy solely by adjusting the length of the alkyl chains represents a relatively uncommon occurrence in the existing literature. This discovery suggests promising prospects for engineering sensory devices equipped with adaptable sensitivity.