The Effect of Reduction on Rhenium(I) Complexes with Binaphthyridine and Biquinoline Ligands: A Spectroscopic and Computational Study

Red Light Absorption of [ReI(CO)3(α-diimine)Cl] Complexes through Extension of the 4,4'-Bipyrimidine Ligand's π-System

Rhenium(I) complexes of type [Re(CO)₃(NN)Cl] (NN = α-diimine) with MLCT absorption in the orange-red region of the visible spectrum have been synthesized and fully characterized, including single crystal X-ray diffraction on two complexes. The strong bathochromic shift of MLCT absorption was achieved through extension of the π-system of the electron-poor bidiazine ligand 4,4'-bipyrimidine by the addition of fused phenyl rings, resulting in 4,4'-biquinazoline. Furthermore, upon anionic cyclization of the twisted bidiazine, a new 4N-doped perylene ligand, namely, 1,3,10,12-tetraazaperylene, was obtained. Electrochemical characterization revealed a significant stabilization of the LUMO in this series, with the first reduction of the azaperylene found at E1/2(0/-) = -1.131 V vs. Fc⁺/Fc, which is the most anodic half-wave potential observed for N-doped perylene derivatives so far. The low LUMO energies were directly correlated to the photophysical properties of the respective complexes, resulting in a strongly red-shifted MLCT absorption band in chloroform with a λ_max = 586 nm and high extinction coefficients (ε_586nm > 5000 M^-1 cm^-1) ranging above 700 nm in the case of the tetraazaperylene complex. Such low-energy MLCT absorption is highly unusual for Re(I) α-diimine complexes, for which these bands are typically found in the near UV. The reported 1,3,10,12-tetraazaperylene complex displayed the [Re(CO)₃(α-diimine)Cl] complex with the strongest MLCT red shift ever reported. UV-Vis NIR spectroelectrochemical investigations gave further insights into the nature and stability of the reduced states. The electron-poor ligands explored herein open up a new path for designing metal complexes with strongly red-shifted absorption, thus enabling photocatalysis and photomedical applications with low-energy, tissue-penetrating red light in future.

fac-Re(CO)3 complexes of 2,6-bis(4-substituted-1,2,3-triazol-1-ylmethyl)pyridine "click" ligands: synthesis, characterisation and photophysical properties

The syntheses of the 4-n-propyl and 4-phenyl substituted fac-Re(CO)(3) complexes of the tridentate "click" ligand (2,6-bis(4-substituted-1,2,3-triazol-1-ylmethyl)pyridine) are described. The complexes were obtained by refluxing methanol solutions of [Re(CO)(5)Cl], AgPF(6) and either the 4-propyl or 4-phenyl substituted ligand for 16 h. The ligands and the two rhenium(I) complexes were characterised by elemental analysis, HR-ESMS, ATR-IR, (1)H and (13)C NMR spectroscopy and the molecular structures of both complexes were confirmed by X-ray crystallography. The electronic structure of the fac-Re(CO)(3) "click" complexes was probed using UV-Vis, Raman and emission spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry and DFT calculations. Altering the electronic nature of the ligand's substituent, from aromatic to alkyl, had little effect on the absorption/emission maxima and electrochemical properties of the complexes indicating that the 1,2,3-triazole unit may insulate the metal centre from the electronic modification at the ligands' periphery. Both Re(I) complexes were found to be weakly emitting with short excited state lifetimes. The electrochemistry of the complexes is defined by quasi-reversible Re oxidation and irreversible triazole-based ligand reduction processes.

Heteroleptic Cu(I) bis-diimine complexes of 6,6'-dimesityl-2,2'-bipyridine: a structural, theoretical and spectroscopic study

A series of heteroleptic Cu(I) complexes containing 6,6'-dimesityl-2,2'-bipyridine and phenanthroline-, bipyridine-, and biquinoline-based ligands is studied. The HETPHEN strategy is utilized to synthesize the heteroleptic complexes, which are stable in solution. The X-ray crystal structures of the complexes are presented; the solid-state four-coordinate Cu(I) geometries are quantified by using the τ4 parameter. A feature of the crystal structures is the intramolecular π-stacking between the mesityl ring(s) and the diimine ligand; the phen-based complexes exhibit stacking between the phen ligand and one of the mesityl rings, creating a "Pac-Man" motif. On the other hand, the bpy-based complexes show different types of packing interaction, with both mesityl rings "clamping down" on the bpy based ligand to give π-stacking. Cyclic voltammetry is used to examine the redox chemistry of the complexes. The most positive potentials for the oxidation process are observed for the complexes with bulky substituents ortho to the coordination nitrogens atoms, i.e., 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline and 6,6'-dibromo-2,2'-bipyridine. The Cu(I) MLCT transitions of the complexes are investigated by resonance Raman spectroscopy in concert with TD-DFT calculations. The resonance Raman spectra of complexes containing substituted biquinolines are straightforward, in that vibrational bands of the biquinoline-based ligand are selectively enhanced over bpy(Mes)2 bands. This is consistent with the purple color of the complexes, due to the lower energy of the biquinoline-based LUMO compared to the bpy(Mes)2 LUMO. All the phen- and bpy-based complexes show enhancement of bpy(Mes)2 bands.

Vibrational Spectroscopy of Reduced Re(I) Complexes of 1,10-Phenanthroline and Substituted Analogues

IR spectroscopy in concert with DFT calculations and resonance Raman spectroelectrochemistry has been used to identify the molecular orbital nature of the singly occupied molecular orbital (SOMO) in reduced [Re(CO)(3)Cl(L)] and [Re(CO)(3)(4-Mepy)(L)](+) complexes, where L = 1,10-phenanthroline and its 4,7-diphenyl- and 3,4,7,8-tetramethyl-substituted analogues. The SOMO of each reduced species considered was found to be of b(1) symmetry, rather than the close lying orbital of a(2) symmetry (within a C(2)(v)() symmetry description of the phenanthroline moiety). This was deduced in a number of ways. First, the average carbonyl band force constants (Deltak(av) = k(av){reduced complex} - k(av){parent complex}) range from -57 to -41 N m(-1) for the series of compounds studied. The value of Deltak(av) relates to the extent of orbital overlap between the ligand MO and the metal dpi MO. These values are consistent with population of a b(1) MO because the wave function amplitude at the chelating nitrogens for this MO is significantly greater than that for a(2) MO. Second, calculations on singly reduced [Re(CO)(3)(4-Mepy)(phen)](+) and [Re(CO)(3)(4-Mepy)(tem)](+) predict population of a b(2) SOMO. The spectra predicted for these species are in close agreement with the vibrational spectroscopic data; for the IR data the shifts in the CO bands are predicted to 6 cm(-1) and the mean absolute deviation between calculated and measured Raman bands was found to be 10 cm(-1).