A highly selective pyrene based “off–on” fluorescent chemosensor for cyanide

A novel pyrene (compound 1) based “off–on” fluorescent chemosensor for cyanide has been designed and synthesized. A prominent fluorescence enhancement of 1·Cu(II) only for cyanide was found in aqueous acetonitrile solution with a detection limit as low as 1.2 × 10−6 M.