BODIPY-based fluorescent sensors for detection of explosives

The detecting and screening of explosives has become a global consideration in dealing with potential terrorism threats and the misuse of high explosives. Several detection techniques have been developed, but their disadvantages include the requirement of expensive equipment, complicated pre-treatment, and prolonged testing. So far, fluorescence-based sensors have been of great interest as they overcome the limitations of other techniques. BODIPY, which is a fluorophore, shows excellent fluorescence features, and it can be used as a sensor material for explosives detection. However, to date, BODIPY-based explosive sensors have not been explored in detail. This work reviews the recent developments on explosive sensors based on BODIPY and its analogs.