Abstract
The electronic properties of the cyclometalated (C∧N) complexes of iridium and platinum metals with a catechol ligand have been studied experimentally and computationally. The synthesis and characterization of (p-tolylpyridine)-lr(3,5-di-tert-butylcatechol) (abbreviated lr-sq) and (2,4-diflorophenylpyridine)Pt(3,5-di-tert-butylcatechol) (abbreviated Pt-sq) are reported along with their structural, spectral, and electrochemical properties. Reaction of the 3,5-di-tert-butylcatechol (DTBCat) ligand with the prepared cyclometalated metal complex was carried out in air in the presence of a base. The resulting complexes are air stable and are paramagnetic with the unpaired electron residing mainly on the catechol ligand. The bond lengths obtained from X-ray structure analysis and the theoretical results suggest the semiquinone form of the catechol ligand. Low-energy, intense (∼103 M -1 cm-1) transitions are observed in the visible to near-infrared region (600-700 nm) of the absorption spectra of the metal complexes. Electrochemically, the complexes exhibit a reversible reduction of the semiquinone form to the catechol form of the ligand and an irreversible oxidation to the unstable quinone form of the ligand. The noninnocent catechol ligand plays a significant role in the electronic properties of the metal complexes. Density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations on the two open-shell molecules provide the ground-state and excited-state energies of the molecular orbitals involved in the observed low-energy transitions. The spin density in the two complexes resides mainly on the catechol ligand. The intense transition arises from excitation of the β electron from a HOMO-n (n = 1 or 2 here) to the LUMO, rather than from the excitation of the unpaired α electron.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 3865-3875 |
Number of pages | 11 |
Journal | Inorganic chemistry |
Volume | 46 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 14 2007 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Physical and Theoretical Chemistry
- Inorganic Chemistry