A novel near-infrared fluorescent probe based on the dicyanoisophorone for the selective detection of Cu2+ in real water samples

•Fluorescent emission for the sensitive detection of Cu2+ at the NIR region of 668 nm.•Quick response time with a large Stokes shift (148 nm) and low detection limitation (0.13 μM).•The probe has been successfully used for Cu2+detection in living cells and water samples. A novel fluorescent probe DCM-CuCl was developed for the detection of Cu2+. With the intramolecular charge transfer effect recovered by a Cu-catalyzed hydrolysis reaction, the probe DCM-CuCl can detect the Cu2+ faster through the molecular modification of chloride ions. In addition, the probe DCM-CuCl has a large Stokes shift (148 nm), NIR region emission (668 nm), and low detection limitation (0.13 μM) . Further, the probe could be used to detect the Cu2+ in living cells and actual water samples. [Display omitted]