title: Copper(II) complexes with new polypodal ligands presenting axial-equatorial phenoxo bridges {2-[(bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amino)methyl]-4-methylphenol, 2-[(bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amino)methyl]-4-methyl-6-(methylthio)phenol}: examples of ferromagnetically coupled bi- and trinuclear copper(II) complexes.
abstract: Two new ligands, 2-[(bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amino)methyl]-4-methylphenol (HL) and 2-[(bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amino)methyl]-4-methyl-6-(methylthio)phenol (HSL), were synthesized and were used to prepare the trinuclear copper(II) complex {[CuSL(Cl)]2Cu}(PF6)2.H2O (1) and the corresponding binuclear complexes [Cu2(SL)2](PF6)2 (2) and [Cu2L2](PF6)2 (3). The crystal structure of 1 shows two different coordination environments: two square base pyramidal centers (Cu1 and Cu1a, related by a C2 axes), acting as ligands of a distorted square planar copper center (Cu2) by means of the sulfur atom of the SCH3 substituent and the bridging phenoxo oxygen atom of the ligand (Cu2-S = 2.294 A). Compounds 2 and 3 show two equivalent distorted square base pyramidal copper(II) centers, bridged in an axial-equatorial fashion by two phenoxo groups, thus defining an asymmetric Cu2O2 core. A long copper-sulfur distance measured in 2 (2.9261(18) A) suggests a weak bonding interaction. This interaction induces a torsion angle between the methylthio group and the phenoxo plane resulting in a dihedral angle of 41.4(5) degrees. A still larger distortion is observed in 1 with a dihedral angle of 74.0(6) degrees. DFT calculations for 1 gave a ferromagnetic exchange between first neighbors interaction, the calculated J value for this interaction being +11.7 cm-1. In addition, an antiferromagnetic exchange for 1 was obtained for the second neighbor interaction with a J value of -0.05 cm-1. The Bleaney-Bowers equation was used to fit the experimental magnetic susceptibility data for 2 and 3; the best fit was obtained with J values of +3.4 and -16.7 cm-1, respectively. DFT calculations for 2 and 3 confirm the nature and the values of the J constants obtained by the fit of the experimental data. ESR and magnetic studies on the reported compounds show a weak exchange interaction between the copper(II) centers. The low values obtained for the coupling constants can be explained in terms of a poor overlap between the magnetic orbitals, due to the axial-equatorial phenoxo bridging mode observed in these complexes.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciencia de los Materiales, Facultad de Ciencias Físicas y Matemáticas, Universidad de Chile, Tupper 2069, Santiago, Chile. jmanzur@dqb.uchile.cl
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Manzur
authors.forename: Hector
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mora
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vega
authors.forename: Evgenia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Spodine
authors.forename: Diego
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Venegas-Yazigi
authors.forename: María Teresa
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Garland
authors.forename: M Salah
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: El Fallah
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Escuer
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D003300:Copper / Q000737:chemistry*; D003408:Cresols / Q000737:chemistry*; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D007501:Iron / Q000737:chemistry*; D008024:Ligands; D008280:Magnetics; D008958:Models, Molecular; D015394:Molecular Structure; D009942:Organometallic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D010636:Phenols / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D011725:Pyridines / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: C523835:2-((bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amino)methyl)-4-methyl-6-(methylthio)phenol; C523834:2-((bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amino)methyl)-4-methylphenol; D003408:Cresols; D008024:Ligands; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D010636:Phenols; D011725:Pyridines; C032538:4-cresol; D003300:Copper; D007501:Iron