Chemical sensing of metal ions using a silica-micelle mesophase doubly functionalized by a fluorogenic ionophore and a masking agent.

We report on a chemical-sensing method based on the silica-micelle mesophase wherein both a fluoroionophore and a masking agent are embedded. Using this method, a highly selective detection of metal ions in an aqueous solution has been successfully demonstrated. Furthermore, simultaneous analyses of multisamples using a sensor array composed of functionalized mesoporous thin films were demonstrated for the first time.