Time-resolved luminescence imaging of intracellular oxygen levels based on long-lived phosphorescent iridium(III) complex

Time-resolved luminescence imaging of intracellular oxygen levels has been demonstrated based on long-lived phosphorescent signal. A phosphorescent dinuclear iridium(III) complex Ir1 has been designed and synthesized, which exhibits excellent optical properties, such as high quantum yields, large Stokes shift, high photostability and long emission lifetime. The phosphorescent intensity and lifetime of complex are very sensitive to oxygen levels. Thus, the application of Ir1 for monitoring intracellular oxygen levels has been realized successfully. Especially, utilizing the advantageous long emission lifetime of Ir1, the background fluorescence interference could be eliminated effectively by using the photoluminescence lifetime imaging and time-gated luminescence imaging techniques, improving the signal-to-noise ratios in bioimaging.