An AIEE-active Triphenylethylene Derivative with Photoresponsive Character for Latent Fingerprints Detection via a Simple Soaking Method

Abstract

Latent ngerprints (LFPs) is one of the most important physical evidence in the criminal scene, playing an important role in forensic investigations. Therefore, developing highly sensitive and convenient materials for the visualization of LFP is of great signi cance. We designed and synthesized an organic uorescent molecule TP-PH with aggregation-induced enhanced emission (AIEE) activity. By simply soaking, blue uorescent images with high contrast and resolution are readily developed on surfaces including tinfoil, steel, glass and plastic. Remarkably, LFPs can be visualized within 5 minutes including the rst-, second-and tertiary-level details. In addition, TP-PH exhibits interesting photoactivated uorescence enhancement properties. Under irradiation by 365 nm UV light with a power density of 382 mW/cm 2 , the uorescence quantum yield displays approximately 21.5-fold enhancement. Mechanism studies reveals that the photoactivated uorescence is attributed to the irreversible cyclodehydrogenation reactions under UV irradiation. This work provides a guideline for the design of multifunctional AIE uorescent materials.