Cu–Cu Interactions in a Coordination Prism
COMMUNICATION
(
average 3.837 ꢁ, 298 K) to 3.556, 3.804, and 3.848 ꢁ (aver-
age 3.736 ꢁ, 143 K), respectively, implying enhancement of
such an attraction at lower temperatures. But this trend is
not reflected in the temperature-dependent luminescent
spectra (Figure 2), and some previous works also showed
that genuine ligand-unassisted cuprophilic attraction is not
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[16,17]
relevant to very short Cu –Cu distances.
In fact, it is
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questionable whether the compression of the Cu –Cu dis-
tances is due to the constraints of the bridging ligands or to
genuine metal–metal interactions. A literature survey (see
Section 3 of the Supporting Information) shows that the
face value of Cu –Cu distances (related to the radii sum of
.8 ꢁ) is an unreliable criterion for assessing metallophilicity
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2
in the Cu family.
3
Figure 3. Frontier-orbital contours of the TDDFT-optimized S0 and T1
states of [Cu L ], showing the HOMO–LUMO band gap of S and the
Instead, energetic considerations by calculating the over-
all stabilization can provide more convincing evidence of
metallophilicity. Theoretical treatments by Schwerdtfeger
6
3
0
lower–upper SOMOs band gap of T
1
, assigned as excitation and emission
bands, respectively. The geometrical optimization is based on the crystal-
lographic data of [Cu ]. To simplify the calculation, the 3,5-dimethyl
6
L
3
[18]
et al. estimated that the pure cuprophilic bonding is in the
substituents of the pyrazolate rings were replaced by hydrogen atoms.
The atomic labels and positions are consistent with the crystal structure
shown in Figure 2. Color codes: orange Cu, blue N, gray C and H; the
ꢁ
1
range of 3.5–4 kcalmol for the ligand-unassisted dimeric
model that contains only one Cu –Cu contact, and for the
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electron density is shown in red and green. The optimized Cu –Cu sepa-
unassisted Cu dimer, with chair conformation and in which
3
0
rations are given below. For S , intratrimeric distances: Cu1
ꢁ
Cu2 3.227,
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multiple Cu –Cu contacts exist, the intertrimeric cuprophilic
Cu1ꢁCu3 3.208, Cu2ꢁCu3 3.247, Cu4ꢁCu5 3.227, Cu4ꢁCu6 3.217, and
stabilization at the S state is calculated to be up to 18.1 kcal
0
Cu5ꢁCu6 3.239 ꢁ; intertrimeric distances: Cu1ꢁCu4 4.165, Cu2ꢁCu5
ꢁ
1 [10]
mol . Herein, we calculate the overall metallophilic sta-
bilization for [Cu L ] (see Figure S6 in Section 5 of the Sup-
4.183, and Cu3ꢁCu6 3.982 ꢁ. For T , intratrimeric distances: Cu1ꢁCu2
1
3
.219, Cu1ꢁCu3 3.230, Cu2ꢁCu3 3.231, Cu4ꢁCu5 2.594, Cu4ꢁCu6 2.554,
6
3
and Cu5ꢁCu6 3.047 ꢁ; intertrimeric distances: Cu1ꢁCu4 3.407, Cu2ꢁCu5
porting Information for calculation details), resulting in a
3
.584, and Cu3ꢁCu6 3.555 ꢁ.
ꢁ
1
value of 19.74 kcalmol , which is larger than in the above-
mentioned reports. Despite the much longer intertrimeric
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Cu –Cu separation (3.837 ꢁ on average) of [Cu L ] than
Cu centers. This HOMO–LUMO band-gap energy is as-
6
3
1
those of the analogous Cu -based oligomer (2.954 ꢁ) and
polymer (3.331 ꢁ),
signed as the excitation band of LMMCT and calculated to
3
[
11]
the larger stabilization energy indi-
appear at l =272 nm, which is close to the experimental
ex
cates enhanced cuprophilicity within the coordination prism.
value of 290 nm. For the phosphorescent T state, the upper
1
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The three Cu –Cu contacts, which exist only in the frontal
mode of the coordination prism, entail this enhanced metal–
metal bonding, also manifested by the above-discussed
structural and spectroscopic uniqueness.
The theoretical origin of the metallophilicity was inter-
preted as hybridization of nd orbitals with (n+1)s and (n+
singly occupied molecular orbital (SOMO) shows increased
intertrimeric bonding compared with the singlet LUMO,
whereas the lower SOMO populated with intratrimeric den-
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sity indicates the disconnection of the intertrimeric Cu ꢁCu
3
bonding. The emission band of the MM state is attributed
to the upper-to-lower SOMOs band-gap energy of T , with a
1
[
4]
1
)p orbitals or as correlation effects strengthened by rela-
calculated emission band at lem =565 nm (experimental
lem =716 nm). Compared with previous modeling of the
[5]
tivistic effects, as introduced above. The key point of this
contention is whether electronic transitions that form
metal–metal bonds are involved. Early DFT calculations
disaffirmed this hypothesis, but recent time-dependent DFT
photophysics of Cu systems (see Table S6 in Section 5 of
3
[6]
the Supporting Information), this result is acceptable. The
theoretical assignments of the luminescent spectra are con-
sistent with the above-discussed experimental data.
[10]
(
TDDFT) analysis performed by Cundari and co-workers,
who considered both the S and T states of cyclic, trinu-
Further structural clues are carefully examined to ration-
alize the unprecedented geometry of the coordination prism
and the unique photophysical behaviors. The above-men-
tioned geometrical optimization (Figure 3) gives rise to the
0
1
clear, coinage metal pyrazolates, clearly showed HOMO–
LUMO, intertrimeric, electron density transitions between
the frontier orbitals of S and T . The intriguing luminescent
0
1
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behaviors presented herein and for other members of the
intertrimeric Cu –Cu distances (3.982, 4.165, 4.183; average
[7–9]
Cu family
also imply a metal–metal bonding character.
4.110 ꢁ) at S ; these are slightly longer than the experimen-
3
0
Herein, we utilize TDDFT calculations to analyze the
frontier orbitals of the optimized S and T states of [Cu L ].
tal values (3.696, 3.868, 3.946; average 3.837 ꢁ), whereas at
T1 the calculated values (3.555, 3.407, 3.584; average
3.515 ꢁ) are shorten by 0.595 ꢁ on average (see Figure S5
and Table S5 in Section 5 of the Supporting Information for
details). This result is experimentally supported by a recent
0
1
6
3
As shown in Figure 3, at the HOMO of S , the electron den-
0
sity is highly distributed on the ligands and metal–ligand co-
ordinative bonds, whereas at the LUMO of S , the electron
0
[19]
density is primarily located around the Cu atoms, showing
study by Coppens and co-workers,
who developed the
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delocalized, intertrimeric, Cu ꢁCu bonding across multiple
technique of time-resolved single-crystal X-ray diffraction
Chem. Eur. J. 2011, 17, 4113 – 4117
ꢀ 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
4115