Co-reporter: Daniel L. Reger, Andrew P. Leitner, and Mark D. Smith
pp: 527-536
Publication Date(Web):December 14, 2015
DOI: 10.1021/acs.cgd.5b01575
The new ligand 5-(1,8-naphthalimido)isophthalate (L1352–), containing two carboxylate donor groups and the 1,8-naphthalimide supramolecular tecton, has been used under solvothermal conditions to prepare a series of group 2, lanthanide, and actinide metal complexes: [Ca4(L135)4(H2O)8]·(H2O)9.5(DMF)2.6 (1), Ba(L135)(H2O)1.5(DMF)0.5 (2), La2(L135)3(DMF)4 (3), Ce2(L135)3(DMF)4 (4), Eu2(L135)3(DMF)4 (5), Tb2(L135)3(DMF)4 (6), [UO2(L135)(DMF)]·(py)0.5(EtOH)0.5 (7), and Th(L135)(NO3)2(DMF)2]·(DMF)2 (8). The solid state structure of the calcium complex 1 is based on helical rod-shaped secondary building-units (SBUs) of edge-shared polyhedra bridged by oxygen atoms from the carboxylate groups. The crystals are racemic, with the one-dimensional (1D) helical rods organized by π···π stacking interactions of the naphthalimide group into a three-dimensional (3D) supramolecular metal-organic framework (SMOF) structure. Although the structure of the barium complex 2 also contains rod-shaped SBUs, the rods are linked through the aryl backbone of the ditopic L1352– ligands into two-dimensional (2D) sheets. The sheets are further engaged in naphthalimide π···π stacking interactions to build a 3D SMOF. The lanthanide(III) complexes 3–6 are isostructural, based on binuclear SBUs linked through the ligands into a square-shaped, 2D grid pattern, with π-stacking interactions linking adjacent sheets to generate a 3D SMOF. The uranium(VI) complex 7 contains 7-coordinate pentagonal bipyramidal uranyl cations bridged through the ligands into 1D ribbons. The solid state structure of the thorium(IV) complex 8 consists of 10-coordinate thorium cations, also bridged through the ligands into 1D ribbons. Both of these actinide structures are organized into 2D supramolecular sheets by π-stacking interactions. Compounds 1, 2, 3, 6, and 8 exhibit solid-state luminescence dominated by the naphthalimide chromophore in the ligand. The group 2 complexes are slightly red-shifted, and the lanthanum complex 3 and the thorium complex 8 are slightly blue-shifted with respect to the ligand. The terbium compound, 6, is greatly blue-shifted by ∼75 nm, and naphthalimide sensitization of the metal emission occurs for the europium complex 5. The cerium(III) and uranyl(VI) compounds 4 and 7 have no solid state emission.