A D−π–A
type quinoline derivative, 2-(((4-(1,
2, 2-triphenylvinyl)phenyl)imino)methyl)quinolin-8-ol (
HL
), was synthesized and structurally characterized. The five-membered
ring formed by the O–H···N hydrogen bond in
HL
contributed to the excited-state intramolecular proton
transfer (ESIPT) behavior of
HL
, which was further verified
by theoretical computations. Upon coordination with Zn
2+
, the hydroxyl proton in
HL
was removed, resulting in
the inhibition of ESIPT. In the meanwhile, the formed
Zn
2
L
4
complex
displayed aggregation-induced emission (AIE) character in THF/H
2
O mixtures, which is conducive to the fluorescence enhancement
in aqueous media. Structure analysis suggested that the origin of
the AIE characteristic was attributed to restriction of intramolecular
rotations along with the formation of
J
-aggregates.
Based on ESIPT coupled with AIE,
HL
could recognize Zn(II)
in aqueous media via an orange fluorescence turn-on mode. Benefitting
from the AIE property, chemosensor
HL
was successfully
applied to fabricate test strips for rapid sensing of Zn(II) ions.