Synthesis and Characterization of Iron Bispyridine Bisdicyanamide, Fe[C5H5N]2[N(CN)2]2.

Fe[C5H5N]2[N(CN)2]2 (1) was synthesized from a reaction of stoichiometric amounts of NaN(CN)2 and FeCl2·4H2O in a methanol/pyridine solution. Single-crystal and powder diffraction show that 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group I2/m (no. 12), different from Mn[C5H5N]2[N(CN)2]2 (P21/c, no. 14) due to tilted pyridine rings, with a = 7.453(7) Å, b = 13.167(13) Å, c = 8.522(6) Å, ß = 114.98(6)° and Z = 2. ATR-IR, AAS, and CHN measurements confirm the presence of dicyanamide and pyridine. Thermogravimetric analysis shows that π-stacking interactions of the pyridine rings play an important role in structural stabilization. Based on DFT-optimized structures, a chemical bonding analysis was performed using a local-orbital framework by projection from a plane-wave basis. The resulting bond orders and atomic charges are in good agreement with the expectations based on the structure analysis. SQUID magnetic susceptibility measurements show a high-spin state FeII compound with predominantly antiferromagnetic exchange interactions at lower temperatures.

Five-Coordinated Geometries from Molecular Structures to Solutions in Copper(II) Complexes Generated from Polydentate-N-Donor Ligands and Pseudohalides.

A novel series of mononuclear five-coordinated pseudohalido-Cu(II) complexes displaying distorted square bipyramidal: [Cu(L1)(NCS)2] (1), [Cu(L2)(NCS)2] (2) and [Cu(L3)(NCS)]ClO4 (5) as well as distorted trigonal bipyramidal: [Cu(isp3tren)(N3)]ClO4 (3), [Cu(isp3tren)(dca)]ClO4 (4) and [Cu(tedmpza)(dca)]ClO4·0.67H2O (6) geometries had been synthesized and structurally characterized using X-ray single crystal crystallography, elemental microanalysis, IR and UV-vis spectroscopy, and molar conductivity measurements. Different N-donor amine skeletons including tridentate: L1 = [(2-pyridyl)-2-ethyl)-(3,4-dimethoxy)-2-methylpyridyl]methylamine and L2 = [(2-pyridyl)-2-ethyl)-(3,5-dimethyl-4-methoxy)-2-methyl-pyridyl]methylamine, and tetradentate: L3 = bis(2-ethyl-di(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-[2-(3,4-dimethoxy-pyridylmethyl)]amine, tedmpza = tris[(2-(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)ethyl]amine and isp3tren = tris[(2-isopropylamino)ethyl)]amine ligands were employed. Molecular structural parameters such as nature of coligand, its chelate ring size and steric environment incorporated into its skeleton, which lead to adopting one of the two limiting geometries in these complexes and other reported compounds are analyzed and correlated to their assigned geometries in solutions. Similar analysis were extended to other five-coordinated halido-Cu(II) complexes.

Expanding the Electrochemical Window: New Tunable Aryl Alkyl Ionic Liquids (TAAILs) with Dicyanamide Anions.

A set of new tunable aryl alkyl ionic liquids (TAAILs) based on the 1-aryl-3-alkyl imidazolium motif has been synthesized, in which the following variables were systematically changed: alkyl chain length, aryl substitution (group and position), and counter ion. TAAILs with dicyanamide (DCA) and bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (N(SO2 CF3 )2 , NTf2 ) anions showed remarkable differences of their physical properties: NTf2 ionic liquids were found to have high decomposition temperatures and viscosities well below those of the DCA TAAILs. In contrast, the dicyanamide anion increased the electrochemical stability leading to TAAILs with an extremely wide electrochemical window of up to 7.17 V. Additionally, both classes of TAAILs extract transition metals from aqueous solutions: TAAILs with the DCA anion extract both platinum and copper while TAAILs with the NTf2 anion are selective towards platinum. This demonstrates that minor changes of the molecular structure lead to TAAILs with drastically changed physicochemical properties.

Dicyanamide Salts that Adopt Smectic, Columnar, or Bicontinuous Cubic Liquid-Crystalline Mesophases.

Although dicyanamide (i.e., [N(CN)2 ]- ) has been commonly used to obtain low-viscosity, halogen-free, room-temperature ionic liquids, liquid-crystalline salts containing such anions have remained virtually unexplored. Here we report a series of amphiphilic dicyanamide salts that, depending on their structures and compositions, adopt smectic, columnar, or bicontinuous cubic thermotropic liquid-crystalline mesophases, even at room temperature in some cases. Their thermal properties were explored by polarized light optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis (including evolved gas analysis), and variable-temperature synchrotron X-ray diffraction. Comparison of the thermal phase characteristics of these new liquid-crystalline salts featuring "V-shaped" [N(CN)2 ]- anions with those of structural analogues containing [SCN]- , [BF4 ]- , [PF6 ]- , or [CF3 SO3 ]- anions indicated that not only the size of the counterion but also its shape should be considered in the development of mesomorphic salts. Collectively, these discoveries may be expected to facilitate the design of thermotropic ionic liquid crystals that form inverted-type bicontinuous cubic and other sophisticated liquid-crystalline phases.

Dicyanamide Bridged Cu(II)36-Metallacrown-6 Complex with 1,4,7-Triisopropyl-1,4,7-Triazacyclononane and Binding Properties with DNA.

A novel 36-metallacrown-6 complex [CuL(N(CN)2)(PF6)]6∙0.5H2O 1 was achieved using a tridendate ligand, 1,4,7-triisopropyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane (L), and a flexible ligand, dicyanamide in MeOH. The µ1,5 bridging models of the dicyanamide ligand linked the macrocycle to form in a specific size with the chair conformation. The anion was important to form this 36-metallacrown-6 complex, as change was obtained with the larger anion BPh4-, binuclear copper compound 2. The magnetic property indicates that slightly ferromagnetic interactions resulted from a superexchange mechanism. DNA binding properties were also studied. UV and fluorescence spectra showed that complex 1 could bind with DNA.

Zinc Dicyanamide: A Potential High-Capacity Negative Electrode for Li-Ion Batteries.

We demonstrate that the ß-polymorph of zinc dicyanamide, Zn[N(CN)2]2, can be efficiently used as a negative electrode material for lithium-ion batteries. Zn[N(CN)2]2 exhibits an unconventional increased capacity upon cycling with a maximum capacity of about 650 mAh·g-1 after 250 cycles at 0.5C, an increase of almost 250%, and then maintaining a large reversible capacity of more than 600 mAh·g-1 for 150 cycles. Such an increased capacity is primarily attributed to the increased level of activity in the conversion reaction. A combination of conversion-type and alloy-type mechanisms is revealed in this anode material via advanced characterization studies and theoretical calculations. This mechanism, observed here for the first time in transition-metal dicyanamides, is probably responsible for the outstanding electrochemical performance. We believe that this study guides the development of new high-capacity anode materials.

Low-dimensional compounds containing cyanide groups. XXVI. (Dicyanamido-κN(1))bis(5,5'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridine-κ(2)N,N')copper(II) complexes with tetrafluoroborate and perchlorate anions.

(Dicyanamido-κN(1))bis(5,5'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridine-κ(2)N,N')copper(II) tetrafluoroborate, [Cu{N(CN)2}(C12H12N2)2]BF4, (I), and (dicyanamido-κN(1))bis(5,5'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridine-κ(2)N,N')copper(II) perchlorate, [Cu{N(CN)2}(C12H12N2)2]ClO4, (II), are isomorphous and consist of [Cu{N(CN)2}(mbpy)2](+) cations (mbpy is 5,5'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridine) and BF4(-) or ClO4(-) anions, respectively. The Cu(II) cations in both structures are five-coordinated in distorted trigonal bipyramidal environments by four N atoms of two mbpy ligands and one N atom of the dicyanamide anion, which is coordinated in a monodentate manner in the equatorial plane, with Cu-N distances of 1.980 (3) and 1.977 (2) Šin (I) and (II), respectively. The two axial Cu-Nmbpy bonds have very similar values [1.986 (1) Šon average] and are shorter than the other two equatorial Cu-Nmbpy bonds. These have different values in the individual compounds but nevertheless form two pairs of similar bonds in (I) and (II) [2.066 (8) and 2.112 (2) Å, respectively, on average]. Besides the ionic forces in both structures, the structures are stabilized by C-H...N and C-H...X hydrogen bonds (X = F and O, respectively), and by π-π interactions between the pyridine rings of neighbouring mbpy molecules.

Dicyanamide-intertwined assembly of two new Zn complexes based on N2O4-type pro-ligand: Synthesis, crystal networks, spectroscopic insights, and selective nitroaromatic turn-off fluorescence sensing.

Two new dicyanamide bridged multinuclear Zn complexes, [Zn2(L1)(µ1,5-dca)2(µ1-dca)]n (1) and [Zn2(L2)(µ1,5-dca)2(µ1-dca)]n (2) have been synthesized using N2O4-based pro-ligands (H2L1 = N,N'-bis(5-bromo-3-methoxysalicylidenimino)-1,3-diaminopropane, H2L2 = N,N'-bis(3-ethoxysalicylidene)-2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propanediamine) and characterized by microanalytical and spectroscopic techniques. Both complexes are stable in solution and solid-state. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) findings showed that complexes are stable at room temperature. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD) has proven that complexes are identical structures where two zinc metal ions are crystallographically independent. The directional properties of dicyanamide co-ligands via µ1,5 bridging have resulted in different connectivity of zinc metal ions leading to 1D templates. SCXRD revealed some notable non-covalent interactions (π⋯π, C-H····π, and H-bonding) in their solid-state crystal structures. 1-2 have strong fluorescence behaviour over pro-ligands, which may be quenched in the presence of various electron-deficient explosive nitroaromatic compounds (epNACs). Complex 2 fluorescence intensity is sharper than 1; hence the former retained high sensitivity and selectivity for trinitrophenol (TNP). The enhancement of fluorescence mechanism, detection limit (LOD), and the quenching constant (KSV) have been calculated using the Stern-Volmer equation (SV), where the KSV value for TNP is found to be 1.542 × 104 M-1. The solution phase quenching mechanism has been rationalized by (a) electrostatic interactions through charge-transfer complex, (b) photo-induced electron transfer (PET) by the HOMO-LUMO energy gap via DFT, and (c) fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). Finally, complex 2 is applied as a sensor by turn-off fluorescence response to detecting TNP nitroaromatics in the DMF medium.

THz, Raman, IR and DFT studies of noncentrosymmetric metal dicyanamide frameworks comprising benzyltrimethylammonium cations.

We report density functional theory (DFT) studies of vibrational modes for benzyltrimethylammonium cations (BeTriMe+) as well as THz, IR and Raman studies of [BeTriMe][M(dca)3(H2O)] (dca = N(CN)2-, dicyanamide; M = Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+) and their anhydrous analogues. These studies show that the anhydrous BeTriMeMn and BeTriMeNi have the same or very similar structures and loss of water molecules leads to significant changes in the metal-dicyanamide frameworks. In particular, the number of dca modes decreases, suggesting increase of crystal symmetry, probablly related with decrease in the number of non-equivalent dca bridges from two to one. Although it is possible that dehydration leads to a replacement of the coordinate Mn-O (Ni-O) bonds by Mn-N (Ni-N) bonds, wherein N atoms come from the C≡N groups of previously non-bridged dca units, reversibility of the dehydration process indicates that such new bonds are either not formed or are very weak. The anhydrous Mn and Ni compounds undergo similar reversible phase transitions to lower symmetry phases. The driving force for these transitions is most likely ordering of dca linkers but this process is accompanied by weak distortion of the metal-dicyanamide frameworks. In the case of BeTriMeCo, the loss of water molecules also leads to significant changes in the cobalt-dicyanamide framework. However, the structure of this analogue is different from the structures of the Mn and Ni counterparts, the number of unique dca linkers is preserved and the dehydration process is irreversible, suggesting more drastic rearrangement of the metal-dicynamide framework.

Spectral, structural and theoretical study of the effects of thiocyanato and dicyanamido ligands on the geometry of PbII complexes containing a triazinic ligand.

Two lead(II) complexes of 5,6-bis(furan-2-yl)-3-(pyridin-2-yl)-1,2,4-triazine (DFPT), namely one-dimensional (1D) catena-poly[[bis[5,6-bis(furan-2-yl)-3-(pyridin-2-yl-κN)-1,2,4-triazine-κN2]lead(II)]-di-µ-thiocyanato-κ2N:S;κ2S:N], [Pb(NCS)2(C16H10N4O2)2]n, 1, and binuclear di-µ-dicyanamido-κ2N1:N5;κ2N5:N1-bis{[5,6-bis(furan-2-yl)-3-(pyridin-2-yl-κN)-1,2,4-triazine-κN2](nitrato-κ2O,O')lead(II)}, [Pb2(C2N3)2(NO3)2(C16H10N4O2)4], 2, as well as DFPT itself, were prepared and identified by elemental analysis, FT-IR, 1H NMR spectroscopy and single-crystal X-ray structural analyses. In the double-chain 1D coordination polymer of 1 and the binuclear structure of 2, the Pb atom has a hemidirected-PbN6S2 and a rare holodirected-PbN6O2 environment, respectively, with a distorted cubic geometry. All the coordination modes of dicyanamide ligands within lead complexes were studied using the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) to compare them with the structures of 1 and 2. In addition to hydrogen bonds, the crystal networks are stabilized by π-π stacking interactions between the triazine, furyl and pyridine aromatic rings. The most stable theoretical structures of the title compounds predicted by density functional theory (DFT) calculations were compared with the solid-state results.

Determination of gas-liquid partition coefficients of several organic solutes in trihexyl (tetradecyl) phosphonium dicyanamide using capillary gas chromatography columns.

We report here gas-liquid partition constants and activity coefficients for thirty-seven volatile organic solutes in ionic liquid trihexyl(tetradecyl)phosphonium dicyanamide measured by gas-liquid chromatography using capillary columns. Four capillary columns with exactly known phase ratios were constructed and employed to measure the solute retention factors at four temperatures between 313.15 and 343.15 K. The partition coefficients were calculated from the slopes of the linear regression between solute retention factors and the reciprocal of phase ratio at a given temperature. The partition coefficients thus calculated are free from errors due to the contribution to retention from gas-liquid interphase adsorption. For these reason, reliable solute's infinite dilution activity coefficients can be obtained, as well as partition enthalpies and entropies. A thorough discussion of the uncertainties of the experimental measurements and the main advantages of the use of capillary columns to acquire the aforementioned relevant thermodynamic information was performed.

Viscosity, Conductivity, and Electrochemical Property of Dicyanamide Ionic Liquids.

The instructive structure-property relationships of ionic liquids (ILs) can be put to task-specific design of new functionalized ILs. The dicyanamide (DCA) ILs are typical CHN type ILs which are halogen free, chemical stable, low-viscous, and fuel-rich. The transport properties of DCA ionic liquids are significant for their applications as solvents, electrolytes, and hypergolic propellants. This work systematically investigates several important transport properties of four DCA ILs ([C4mim][N(CN)2], [C4m2im][N(CN)2], N4442[N(CN)2], and N8444[N(CN)2]) including viscosity, conductivity, and electrochemical property at different temperatures. The melting points, temperature-dependent viscosities and conductivities reveal the structure-activity relationship of four DCA ILs. From the Walden plots, the imidazolium cations exhibit stronger cation-anion attraction than the ammonium cations. DCA ILs have relatively high values of electrochemical windows (EWs), which indicates that the DCA ILs are potential candidates for electrolytes in electrochemical applications. The cyclic voltammograms of Eu(III) in these DCA ILs at GC working electrode at various temperatures 303-333 K consists of quasi-reversible waves. The electrochemical properties of the DCA ILs are also dominated by the cationic structures. The current intensity (ip), the diffusion coefficients (Do), the charge transfer rate constants (ks) of Eu(III) in DCA ILs all increased with the molar conductivities increased. The cationic structure-transport property relationships of DCA ILs were constructed for designing novel functionalized ILs to fulfill specific demands.

Low-dimensional compounds containing cyanido groups. Part XXXV. Structure, spectral, thermal and magnetic properties of a binuclear CuII-biquinoline complex with bridging and terminal dicyanamide ligands.

From the system CuCl2-biq-NaN(CN)2 (biq is 2,2'-biquinoline), the binuclear molecular complex bis(µ-dicyanamido-κ2N1:N5)bis[(2,2'-biquinoline-κ2N,N')(dicyanamido-κN1)copper(II)], [Cu2(C2N3)4(C18H12N2)2] or [Cu2(biq)2(dca)2(µ1,5-dca)2] (1) [dca is dicyanamide, N(CN)2-] was isolated and characterized by crystal structure analysis, and spectral, thermal and magnetic measurements. IR spectroscopy confirmed the presence of the biq and dca ligands in 1. Its solid-state structure consists of discrete centrosymmetric binuclear copper(II) units with double end-to-end dca bridges. Each CuII atom is in a distorted square-pyramidal environment with the equatorial plane formed by two nitrile N atoms from bridging dca groups, one of the two N atoms of the chelate biq molecule and one nitrile N atom from a terminal dca ligand, whereas the second biq N atom occupies the axial position. Thermal decomposition of 1 in an air atmosphere proceeds gradually, with copper(I) cyanide being the final decomposition product. Magnetic measurements revealed the formation of alternating spin chains and a relatively strong exchange interaction within the binuclear units was also confirmed by Broken Symmetry DFT (density functional theory) calculations.

A new two-dimensional polymeric cadmium(II) complex containing dicyanamide bridging ligands.

As part of an exploration of new coordination polymers, a cadmium-dicyanamide complex, namely poly[benzyltriethylammonium [tri-µ-dicyanamido-κ6N1:N5-cadmium(II)]], {(C13H22N)[Cd(C2N3)3]}n, has been synthesized by the reaction of benzyltriethylammonium bromide, cadmium nitrate tetrahydrate and sodium dicyanamide in aqueous solution, and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction at room temperature. In the crystal structure, each CdII cation is coordinated by six nitrile N atoms from six anionic dicyanamide (dca) ligands to furnish a slightly distorted octahedral geometry. Neighbouring CdII cations are linked by dicyanamide bridges to construct a two-dimensional anionic layer coordination polymer. One amide N atom in the bridging dca ligand is disordered over two sites. The cations lie between the anionic frameworks and there are no hydrogen-bond interactions between the cations and anions. The organic cations are not involved in the formation of the supramolecular network.

Designing a heterotrinuclear Cu(II)-Ni(II)-Cu(II) complex from a mononuclear Cu(II) Schiff base precursor with dicyanamide as a coligand: synthesis, crystal structure, thermal and photoluminescence properties.

Schiff bases are considered `versatile ligands' in coordination chemistry. The design of polynuclear complexes has become of interest due to their facile preparations and varied synthetic, structural and magnetic properties. The reaction of the `ligand complex' [CuL] {H2L is 2,2'-[propane-1,3-diylbis(nitrilomethanylylidene)]diphenol} with Ni(OAc)2·4H2O (OAc is acetate) in the presence of dicyanamide (dca) leads to the formation of bis(dicyanamido-1κN(1))bis(dimethyl sulfoxide)-2κO,3κO-bis{µ-2,2'-[propane-1,3-diylbis(nitrilomethanylylidene)]diphenolato}-1:2κ(6)O,O':O,N,N',O';1:3κ(6)O,O':O,N,N',O'-dicopper(II)nickel(II), [Cu2Ni(C17H16N2O2)2(C2N3)2(C2H6OS)2]. The complex shows strong absorption bands in the frequency region 2155-2269 cm(-1), which clearly proves the presence of terminal bonding dca groups. A single-crystal X-ray study revealed that two [CuL] units coordinate to an Ni(II) atom through the phenolate O atoms, with double phenolate bridges between Cu(II) and Ni(II) atoms. Two terminal dca groups complete the distorted octahedral geometry around the central Ni(II) atom. According to differential thermal analysis-thermogravimetric analysis (DTA-TGA), the title complex is stable up to 423 K and thermal decomposition starts with the release of two coordinated dimethyl sulfoxide molecules. Free H2L exhibits photoluminescence properties originating from intraligand (π-π*) transitions and fluorescence quenching is observed on complexation of H2L with Cu(II).

Synthesis, structural characterization and thermal properties of a new copper(II) one-dimensional coordination polymer based on bridging N,N'-bis(2-hydroxybenzylidene)-2,2-dimethylpropane-1,3-diamine and dicyanamide ligands.

The design and synthesis of polymeric coordination compounds of 3d transition metals are of great interest in the search for functional materials. The coordination chemistry of the copper(II) ion is of interest currently due to potential applications in the areas of molecular biology and magnetochemistry. A novel coordination polymer of Cu(II) with bridging N,N'-bis(2-hydroxyphenyl)-2,2-dimethylpropane-1,3-diamine (H2L-DM) and dicyanamide (dca) ligands, catena-poly[[[µ2-2,2-dimethyl-N,N'-bis(2-oxidobenzylidene)propane-1,3-diamine-1:2κ(6)O,N,N',O':O,O']dicopper(II)]-di-µ-dicyanamido-1:2'κ(2)N(1):N(5);2:1'κ(2)N(1):N(5)], [Cu2(C19H20N2O2)(C2N3)2]n, has been synthesized and characterized by CHN elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, thermal analysis and X-ray single-crystal diffraction analysis. Structural studies show that the Cu(II) centres in the dimeric asymmetric unit adopt distorted square-pyramidal geometries, as confirmed by the Addison parameter (τ) values. The chelating characteristics of the L-DM(2-) ligand results in the formation of a Cu(II) dimer with a double phenolate bridge in the asymmetric unit. In the crystal, the dimeric units are further linked to adjacent dimeric units through µ1,5-dca bridges to produce one-dimensional polymeric chains.

Crystal structure of catena-poly[bis-(tetra-ethyl-ammonium) [tetra-aqua-tris(µ-dicyanamido-κ2N1:N5)bis(dicyanamido-κN1)di-cobaltate(II)] dicyanamide].

The structure of the title compound, [N(C2H5)4]2[Co2(C2N3)5(H2O)4](C2N3), is a new example of a metal-dicyanamide coordination polymer which exhibits a unique three-dimensional framework of covalently linked CoII chains. All bridging dicyanamide ligands in the title structure are in the µ1,5-bridging mode. The anionic CoII-dicyanamide network is templated by tetra-ethyl-ammonium cations residing in a series of channels extending along the b axis where additional non-coordinating dicyanamidate anions are also located. The framework structure is further stabilized by O-H⋯N hydrogen bonding between aqua ligands and dicyanamido ligands or the dicyanamide anion. In addition, C-H⋯N inter-actions are present between the tetra-ethyl-ammonium cations and dicyanamide amide nitro-gen atoms.

A novel one-dimensional manganese(II) coordination polymer containing both dicyanamide and pyrazinamide ligands: synthesis, spectroscopic investigations, X-ray studies and evaluation of biological activities.

A novel 1D coordination polymer {[Mn(µ1,5-dca)2(PZA)2](PZA)2}n, 1, has been synthesized and characterized by single crystal X-ray crystallography. The coordination mode of dicyanamide (dca) and pyrazinamide (PZA) ligands was inferred by IR spectroscopy. The compound 1 was evaluated for in vitro antimycobacterial and antitumor activities. It demonstrated better in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis than pyrazinamide and its MIC value was determined. Complex 1 was also screened for its in vitro antitumor activity towards LM3 and LP07 murine cancer cell lines. In addition, the antibacterial activity of complex 1 has been tested against Gram(+) and Gram(-) bacteria and it has shown promising broad range anti-bacterial activity.

A three-dimensional anionic metal-dicyanamide network in poly[ethyltriphenylphosphonium [tri-µ2-dicyanamidato-cadmium(II)]].

The title compound, (C20H20P)[Cd(C2N3)3], consists of ethyltriphenylphosphonium (EtPh3P(+)) cations filling voids in a three-dimensional anionic cadmium dicyanamide network. In the structure, each Cd(II) atom is connected to six neighbouring Cd(II) atoms through six separate dicyanamide ligands, forming cube-shaped cages. The three-dimensional anionic network encloses a solvent-accessible void space of 1851 Å(3), amounting to 69.3% of the unit-cell volume. Each cage accommodates only one EtPh3P(+) cation.

Two different anionic manganese(II) coordination polymers constructed through dicyanamide coordination bridges.

In order to explore new metal coordination polymers and to search for new types of ferroelectrics among hybrid coordination polymers, two manganese dicyanamide complexes, poly[tetramethylammonium [di-µ3-dicyanamido-κ(6)N(1):N(3):N(5)-tri-µ2-dicyanamido-κ(6)N(1):N(5)-dimanganese(II)]], {[(CH3)4N][Mn2(NCNCN)5]}n, (I), and catena-poly[bis(butyltriphenylphosphonium) [[(dicyanamido-κN(1))manganese(II)]-di-µ2-dicyanamido-κ(4)N(1):N(5)]], {[(C4H9)(C6H5)3P]2[Mn(NCNCN)4]}n, (II), were synthesized in aqueous solution. In (I), one Mn(II) cation is octahedrally coordinated by six nitrile N atoms from six anionic dicyanamide (dca) ligands, while the second Mn(II) cation is coordinated by four nitrile N atoms and two amide N atoms from six anionic dca ligands. Neighbouring Mn(II) cations are linked together by µ-1,5- and µ-1,3,5-bridging dca anions to form a three-dimensional polymeric structure. The anionic framework exhibits a solvent-accessible void of 289.8 Å(3), amounting to 28.0% of the total unit-cell volume. Each of the cavities in the network is occupied by only one tetramethylammonium cation. In (II), each Mn(II) cation is octahedrally coordinated by six nitrile N atoms from six dca ligands. Neighbouring Mn(II) cations are linked together by double dca bridges to form a one-dimensional polymeric chain, and C-H...N hydrogen-bonding interactions are involved in the formation of the one-dimensional layer structure.