Chandrasekar Rajadurai

Self-recognition and self-selection in multicomponent supramolecular coordination networks on surfaces

Self-recognition, self-selection, and dynamic self-organization are of fundamental importance for the assembly of all supramolecular systems, but molecular-level information is not generally accessible. We present direct examples of these critical steps by using scanning tunneling microscopy to study mixtures of complementary organic ligands on a copper substrate. The ligands coordinate cooperatively with iron atoms to form well ordered arrays of rectangular multicomponent compartments whose size and shape can be deliberately tuned by selecting ligands of desired length from complementary ligand families. We demonstrate explicitly that highly ordered supramolecular arrays can be produced from redundant ligand mixtures by molecular self-recognition and -selection, enabled by efficient error correction and cooperativity, and show an example of failed self-selection due to error tolerance in the ligand mixture, leading to a disordered structure.

Supramolecular lattice-solvent control of iron(II) spin transition parameters

We report on the synthesis of spin transition compounds 1, 2 of formula [Fe(L)2](A)2 (where L = 2′,6′-bis(pyrazol-1-yl)-3,4′-bipyridine, A = ClO4−—compound 1; A = BF4−—compound 2) and compound 3 of formula [Fe(L)(LH)](BF4)3·H2O·CH3CN (where LH = 3-(2,6-bis(pyrazol-1-yl) pyridine-4-yl)-pyridinium(+)). Compounds 1, 2 and 3 were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, ESI-ToF mass spectrometry, 1H NMR and elemental analysis. The single-crystal X-ray diffraction study of the counter anion analogues 1 and 2 reveals almost identical molecular structures without any significant presence of intermolecular interactions. However, in the case of compound 3, the crystal structure reveals supramolecular interactions involving molecular cations, BF4− anions and, most importantly, lattice solvent molecules. The presence of solvent water molecules induces the presence of two different types of hydrogen bonding: (i) water molecules interacting with the fluorine atoms of BF4− anions and (ii) water molecules interconnecting protonated and nonprotonated nitrogens of pyridine-3-yl substituents of neighboring complex cations. These overall hydrogen bonding pattern between the neighboring iron(II) complex cation moieties is responsible for the formation of a one dimensional (1D) hydrogen bonded zig-zag chain. The magnetic investigations elucidate high temperature spin transition behavior for both anion analogues 1 and 2, while compound 3 exhibits a lattice-solvent dependency of the temperature-driven spin transition accompanied with stepwise solvent liberation above room temperature. After complete solvent removal the solvent-free compound 3d, [Fe(L)(LH)](BF4)3, shows an abrupt spin transition accompanied with thermal hysteresis loop; T1/2(↑) = 240 K and T1/2(↓) = 231 K, ΔT1/2 = 9 K. The Ising-like model that includes two vibrational modes has been applied in a direct fitting of magnetic data. The model recovers the temperature evolution of the χT product functions for all compounds under study, involving also compound 3d with the thermal hysteresis.