Crystal Engineering Using Polyiodide Halogen and Chalcogen Bonding to Isolate the Phenothiazinium Radical Cation and its Rare Dimer, 10-(3-phenothiazinylidene)phenothiazinium.

Abstract

Utilizing facile one-electron oxidation of 10H-phenothiazine by molecular diiodine, the solid-state structure of the 10H-phenothiazinium radical cation was obtained in three cation:iodide ratios, as well as its THF and acetone solvates. Oxidation of 10H-phenothiazine with molecular diiodine in DMSO or DMF provided the structure of the radical coupling product 10-(3-phenothiazinyldene)phenothiazinium, which has not been crystallographically characterized to-date. The radical cations were balanced by a mixture (I 7 ) - , (I 5 ) - , (I 3 ) - , and I - anions, where a variety of chalcogen, halogen, and hydrogen bonding interactions stabilize the structures to reveal these interesting cationic species.