Gold(I) complexes of tetrathiaheterohelicene phosphanes.

New tetrathia[7]helicene-based (7-TH-based) gold(I) complexes 6 and 7 have been readily prepared by reaction of the respective phosphine ligands 2 and 3 with Au(tht)Cl in a 1:1 and 1:2 molar ratio, respectively. These complexes have been fully characterized by analytical and spectroscopic techniques as well as quantum chemical calculations. The molecular structure of dinuclear complex 7 has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, showing a gold-gold interaction of 3.1825(3) Å and a significant contraction of the 7-TH total dihedral angle. Au(I) complex 7 displays luminescence emission at room and low temperature in diluted solution and in the solid state. Quantum chemical calculations show that the luminescence emission at room temperature is primarily due to slightly perturbed fluorescence emission from purely ππ* excited states of the conjugated helicene scaffold. At 77 K phosphorescence emission is displayed as well. Preliminary studies on the use of 6 and 7 as catalysts in typical Au(I)-catalyzed cycloisomerizations have demonstrated the reactivity of these systems in the intramolecular allene hydroarylations and the hydroxycarboxylation of allene-carboxylates.

A [4+2] mixed ligand approach to ruthenium DNA metallointercalators [Ru(tpa)(N-N)](PF(6))(2) using a tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (tpa) capping ligand.

A series of five tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (tpa) ruthenium complexes [Ru(tpa)(N-N)](PF(6))(2) with N-N=bpy (2,2'-bipyridine), phen (1,10-phenanthroline), dpq (dipyrido[3,2-d:2',3'-f]quinoxaline), dppz (dipyrido[3,2-a;2',3'-c]phenazine), and dppn (4,5,9,16-tetraazadibenzo[a,c]naphthacene) was prepared and characterized by NMR, UV-Visible (UV/Vis), and fluorescence spectroscopy as well as cyclic voltammetry. Structures optimized with density functional theory methods (DFT, BP86, TZVP) without constraints show C(1) symmetry while in solution, the (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra are in accordance with an average C(s) symmetry. This is thought to be due to a low energy barrier for flipping of the equatorial pyridine ring from one side of the N-N plane to the other. The electronic structure of the compounds was studied with DFT and a change in the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) character from Ru t(2g) for the bpy, phen, and dpq to N-N ligand-based for the dppz and dppn complexes was found. TDDFT calculations showed dominant N-N-based intra-ligand charge transfer (ILCT) transitions in the latter two complexes mixed with metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) bands found for all five compounds. DNA binding of the complexes was studied with UV/Vis titrations, the fluorescent ethidium bromide displacement assay, and CD spectroscopy. The affinity increases with the aromatic surface area of of the bidentate N-N ligand in the order bpy<