A polymorph of tetrakis(acetonitrile-kappaN)copper(I) tetrafluoridoborate.

A P2(1)2(1)2(1) polymorph of the title compound, [Cu(CH(3)CN)(4)]BF(4), is reported. The crystal structure is very similar to the structure of the Pna2(1) polymorph reported by Jones & Crespo [Acta Cryst. (1998), C54, 18-20]. The anions and one of the three independent cations occupy similar positions in both polymorphs. Two of the four symmetry-related positions of the other two cations are also identical in the two polymorphs, and the other two positions are related by mirror symmetry. The crystal used for the structure determination contained a volume fraction of 0.088 (7) of the Pna2(1) polymorph.

Redox-active p-quinone-based Bis(pyrazol-1-yl)methane ligands: synthesis and coordination behaviour.

The synthesis, structural characterisation and coordination behaviour of mono- and ditopic p-hydroquinone-based bis(pyrazol-1-yl)methane ligands is described (i.e., 2-(pz2CH)C6H3(OH)2 (2a), 2-(pz2CH)-6-(tBu)C6H2(OH)2 (2b), 2-(pz2CH)-6-(tBu)C6H2(OSiiPr3)(OH) (2c), 2,5-(pz2CH)2C6H2(OH)2 (4)). Ligands 2a, 2b and 4 can be oxidised to their p-benzoquinone state on a preparative scale (2a ox, 2b ox, 4 ox). An octahedral Ni II complex [trans-Ni(2c)2] and square-planar Pd II complexes [Pd2bCl2] and [Pd2b ox Cl2] have been prepared. In the two Pd II species, the ligands are coordinated only through their pyrazolyl rings. The fact that [Pd2bC12] and [Pd2b oxC12] are isolable compounds proves that redox transitions involving the p-quinone substituent are fully reversible. In [Pd2b oxCl2], the methine proton is highly acidic and can be abstracted with bases as weak as NEt(3). The resulting anion dimerises to give a dinuclear macrocyclic Pd II complex, which has been structurally characterised. The methylated ligand 2-(pz2CMe)C6H3O2 (11 ox) and its Pd II complex [Pd11 oxCl2] are base-stable. A new class of redox-active ligands is now available with the potential for applications both in catalysis and in materials science.

Hydroquinone-bridged dinuclear Cu(II) complexes and single-crystalline Cu(II) coordination polymers.

Cationic dinuclear Cu(II) complexes 3 and 4 have been prepared using the novel hydroquinone-based imine chelators 2,5-((i)Pr(2)NCH(2)CH(2)N[double bond, length as m-dash]CH)(2)-1,4-(OH)(2)-C(6)H(2) (1) and 2,5-(pyCH(2)CH(2)N[double bond, length as m-dash]CH)(2)-1,4-(OH)(2)-C(6)H(2) (2), respectively (py = 2-pyridyl). X-Ray quality crystals of both complexes were grown from their DMF solutions. The sterically more encumbered compound crystallizes in the form of discrete dinuclear entities with Cu(II) centres in a distorted square-planar ligand environment (one coordination site is occupied by a DMF molecule). The pyridyl derivative 4 features dinuclear hydroquinone-bridged subunits similar to 3. However, the Cu(II) ions are now six-coordinate with two DMF molecules at an axial and an equatorial position of a Jahn-Teller-distorted octahedron. Moreover, the dinuclear subunits are no longer isolated but linked with each other via bridging hydroquinone oxygen atoms which occupy the second apical position of each octahedron. The structure suggests that the magnetic properties of the resulting coordination polymer of 4 could be described by a model valid for dimerized spin chains. As a result of this analysis the antiferromagnetic coupling constants J(1)/k(B) = 9.9 K (intradimer) and J(2)/k(B) = 0.9 K (interdimer) are obtained. Both in 3 and in 4, the hydroquinone --> semiquinone transition of the central bridging unit (E degrees ' = + 0.57 V, 3; E degrees ' = + 0.51 V, 4; DMF; vs. SCE) displays features of chemical reversibility. In the case of , reduction of Cu(II) centres requires a peak potential of E(p) = - 0.42 V.

Mono-, di-, and oligonuclear complexes of Cu(II) ions and p-hydroquinone ligands: syntheses, electrochemical properties, and magnetic behavior.

Four highly soluble square-planar Cu(II) and Ni(II) complexes of siloxy-salens (2SiCu, 2SiNi) and hydroxy-salens (2Cu, 2Ni) have been synthesized. An X-ray crystal structure analysis was performed on 2SiCu, 2SiNi, and 2Ni. The compounds have been investigated by cyclic voltammetry, UV-vis-NIR spectroelectrochemistry, and EPR spectroscopy. According to these results, the monooxidized species [2SiCu]+ and [2SiNi]+ are to be classified as Robin-Day class II and III systems, respectively. Magnetic measurements on the dinuclear (PMDTA)Cu(II) complex 1Cu2 x (PF6)2 with deprotonated 1,4-dihydroxy-2,5-bis(pyrazol-1-yl)-benzene (1) linker revealed antiferromagnetic coupling between the two Cu(II) ions thereby resulting in an isolated dimer compound. Coordination polymers [1Cu]n(H2O)(2n) of Cu(II) ions and bridging p-hydroquinone linkers were obtained from CuSO4 x 5 H2O and 1,4-dihydroxy-2,5-bis(pyrazol-1-yl)benzene. X-ray crystallography revealed linear chains running along the crystallographic a-direction and stacked along the b-axis. Within these chains, the Cu(II) ions are coordinated by two pyrazolyl nitrogen atoms and two p-hydroquinone oxygen atoms in a square-planar fashion.