title: Luminescent lanthanide complexes of a bis-bipyridine-phosphine-oxide ligand as tools for anion detection.
abstract: The Gd(3+), Tb(3+), and Eu(3+) complexes of a bis-bipyridine-phenylphosphine oxide ligand PhP(O)(bipy)(2) 1 (bipy for 6-methylene-6'-methyl-2,2'-bipyridine) have been synthesized. In acetonitrile solutions at room temperature, the Tb(3+) and Eu(3+) complexes show a metal-centered luminescence, indicative of an efficient energy transfer from the two bipy subunits to the Ln center. The photophysical properties drastically depend on the nature of the anions present in solution. In particular, addition of 2 equiv of nitrate anions to a solution containing the [Ln.1](OTf-)(3) leads to an 11-fold increase of the luminescence intensity for the Eu(3+) and a 7-fold increase for the Tb(3+) complexes. Similar effects are provided with Cl-, F-, and CH(3)COO- anions. UV-vis titration experiments were used to determine association constants for binding of, respectively, one, two, and three anions. Stepwise anion addition has also been investigated on the molecular level using quantum mechanical (QM) calculations for the Eu complexes. These calculations reproduce the experimental findings, especially if solvent molecule addition is taken into account. The X-ray crystal structure of the nitrate salt of the Tb complex, as well as QM calculation of a similar Eu complex, demonstrates the coordination of three nitrate anions in a bidentate mode and the step-by-step relegation of the bipy subunits in the second coordination sphere. These features give valuable insights into the mechanism of the overall light amplification process.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Chimie Moléculaire, Ecole de Chimie, Polymères et Matériaux, ULP, 25 rue Becquerel, 67087 Strasbourg Cedex 02, France.
authors.forename: Loïc J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Charbonnière
authors.forename: Raymond
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ziessel
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Montalti
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Prodi
authors.forename: Nelsi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zaccheroni
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Boehme
authors.forename: Georges
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wipff