AbstractThe reaction of nickel thiocyanate with bipy (4,4′‐bipyridine) in water at room temperature leads to the formation of the ligand‐rich 1:2 (1:2 ratio between metal salt and organic ligand) hydrate [{Ni(NCS)2(bipy)(H2O)2}·(bipy)]n (1‐Ni), which is isotypic to its analogues 1‐Mn and 1‐Co reported recently. In their crystal structure, the metal cations are coordinated by two terminal N‐bonded thiocyanato anions, two water molecules, and two bridging bipy ligands in an octahedral coordination mode. These building blocks elongate in linear M–bipy–M chains, which are further connected by hydrogen bonds between H2O and noncoordinated bipy ligands into layers. On heating these precursor compounds, two‐step decomposition is observed: New ligand‐rich 1:2 anhydrous compounds [M(NCS)2(bipy)2]n [M = Mn (2‐Mn), Co (2‐Co), and Ni (2‐Ni)] could be identified as intermediates in the first heating step, and new ligand‐deficient 1:1 compounds [M(NCS)2(bipy)]n [M = Mn (3‐Mn), Co (3‐Co), and Ni (3‐Ni)] could be identified as intermediates in the second heating step. A smooth reaction pathway in their crystal structures is observed: First, water is removed, leading to directly coordinating bipy ligands, and second, half of the bipy ligands are removed, leading to μ‐1,3‐bridging thiocyanato anions. This structural transformation is accompanied by a dramatic change in their magnetic properties: Whereas the ligand‐rich 1:2 hydrates and anhydrous compounds show only Curie–Weiss paramagnetism, the ligand‐deficient 1:1 intermediates show either Curie–Weiss paramagnetism or antiferromagnetic ordering at lower temperatures, mediated by the bridging thiocyanato anions. These results are qualitatively compared with those of the related ligand‐rich and ligand‐deficient compounds with pyrazine and pyrimidine.
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