Nickel(II) derivatives based on o-iminobenzoquinone-type ligands: Structural modifications, magnetism and electrochemical peculiarities

Abstract

New bis-o-iminobenzosemiquinonato derivatives of nickel (imSQC(O)Ph)2Ni (1) and (imSQPh)2Ni (2) that are ligated by functionalized o-aminophenols H2LC(O)Ph and H2LPh, respectively, were synthesized. Complex 1 is distinguished by a square-planar geometry of N2O2 coordination core while the bis-o-iminobenzosemiquinonate 2 demonstrates a slight deviation from planarity. Both complexes 1 and 2 show the strong antiferromagnetic interactions between radical anion ligands as established by variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements. Electrochemical behavior of 1 and 2 is represented by ligand-centered redox transitions: two quasi-reversible one-electron reduction processes and two-electron oxidation one. The salient peculiarity of cyclic voltammogram for 1 is an increase in number of redox waves owing to the quasi-reversible reduction of benzophenone fragments in ligands. Six-coordinated NiII derivative [(imQC(O)Ph)2Ni(H2O)2](OSO2CF3)2 (3) with two o-iminobenzoquinones as well as four-coordinated NiII species [(imSQC(O)Ph)Ni(APC(O)Ph)]CoCp2∙2.1toluene (4∙2.1toluene) including radical-anion and o-amidophenolate forms of redox-active ligand were prepared as products of oxidation and reduction of the initial 1, respectively, in accordance with the CV data. The value of effective magnetic moment (μeff) unambiguously indicates the high-spin state for nodal NiII ion in 3. Low-temperature EPR signal demonstrates rather the ligand-centered nature of unpaired electron in 4 that corresponds to the total doublet ground spin state (S = 1/2) for compound and diamagnetic low-spin (SNi = 0) configuration of the metal center.