Zi Shuo Yao

Molecular motor-driven abrupt anisotropic shape change in a single crystal of a Ni complex

Many molecular machines with controllable molecular-scale motors have been developed. However, transmitting molecular movement to the macroscopic scale remains a formidable challenge. Here we report a single crystal of a Ni complex whose shape changes abruptly and reversibly in response to thermal changes at around room temperature. Variable-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies show that the crystalline shape change is induced by an unusual 90° rotation of uniaxially aligned oxalate molecules. The oxalate dianions behave as molecular-scale rotors, with their movement propagated through the entire crystalline material via intermolecular hydrogen bonding. Consequently, the subnanometre-scale changes in the oxalate molecules are instantly amplified to a micrometre-scale contraction or expansion of the crystal, accompanied by a thermal hysteresis loop. The shape change in the crystal was clearly detected under an optical microscope. The large directional deformation and prompt response suggest a role for this material in microscale or nanoscale thermal actuators.

Above Room Temperature Organic Ferroelectrics: Diprotonated 1,4-Diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane Shifts between Two 2-Chlorobenzoates

A pure organic single crystal, [H2dabco]·[2CB]2 ([H2dabco](2+) = diprotonated 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane, 2CB(-) = 2-chlorobenzoate), which undergoes a ferroelectric-to-paraelectric phase transition above room temperature (∼323 K upon heating), was prepared and characterized. This ferroelectric crystal possesses a distinctive supramolecular architecture composed of discrete H-bonded trimeric units (two 2CB(-) anions bridged by one [H2dabco](2+) cation through N-H···O hydrogen bond interactions). In the paraelectric phase, the [H2dabco](2+) cation is rotationally disordered and lies at the symmetric center of the trimer. Upon cooling, it is frozen in an ordered state and deviates toward a 2CB(-) anion at one end along the H-bond. The collective displacement of the cations leads to a polarization of the single crystal along the crystallographic c axis, which is confirmed by the temperature dependence of the second harmonic generation and spontaneous polarization. A significant increase in the phase transition temperature of the deuterated analogue suggests that the proton plays an important role in the ferroelectric phase transition.

Charge-Transfer Phase Transition of a Cyanide-Bridged FeII/FeIII Coordination Polymer

Heterometallic Prussian blue analogues are known to exhibit thermally induced charge transfer, resulting in switching of optical and magnetic properties. However, charge-transfer phase transitions have not been reported for the simplest FeFe cyanide-bridged systems. A mixed-valence Fe(II) /Fe(III) cyanide-bridged coordination polymer, {[Fe(Tp)(CN)3 ]2 Fe(bpe)⋅5 H2 O}n , which demonstrates a thermally induced charge-transfer phase transition, is described. As a result of the charge transfer during this phase transition, the high-spin state of the whole system does not change to a low-spin state. This result is in contrast to FeCo cyanide-bridged systems that exhibit charge-transfer-induced spin transitions.

Assembling an alkyl rotor to access abrupt and reversible crystalline deformation of a cobalt(II) complex

Harnessing molecular motion to reversibly control macroscopic properties, such as shape and size, is a fascinating and challenging subject in materials science. Here we design a crystalline cobalt(II) complex with an n-butyl group on its ligands, which exhibits a reversible crystal deformation at a structural phase transition temperature. In the low-temperature phase, the molecular motion of the n-butyl group freezes. On heating, the n-butyl group rotates ca. 100° around the C–C bond resulting in 6–7% expansion of the crystal size along the molecular packing direction. Importantly, crystal deformation is repeatedly observed without breaking the single-crystal state even though the shape change is considerable. Detailed structural analysis allows us to elucidate the underlying mechanism of this deformation. This work may mark a step towards converting the alkyl rotation to the macroscopic deformation in crystalline solids.

Superior thermoelasticity and shape-memory nanopores in a porous supramolecular organic framework

Flexible porous materials generally switch their structures in response to guest removal or incorporation. However, the design of porous materials with empty shape-switchable pores remains a formidable challenge. Here, we demonstrate that the structural transition between an empty orthorhombic phase and an empty tetragonal phase in a flexible porous dodecatuple intercatenated supramolecular organic framework can be controlled cooperatively through guest incorporation and thermal treatment, thus inducing empty shape-memory nanopores. Moreover, the empty orthorhombic phase was observed to exhibit superior thermoelasticity, and the molecular-scale structural mobility could be transmitted to a macroscopic crystal shape change. The driving force of the shape-memory behaviour was elucidated in terms of potential energy. These two interconvertible empty phases with different pore shapes, that is, the orthorhombic phase with rectangular pores and the tetragonal phase with square pores, completely reject or weakly adsorb N2 at 77 K, respectively.

Field-Induced Slow Magnetic Relaxation in an Octacoordinated Fe(II) Complex with Pseudo-D2d Symmetry: Magnetic, HF-EPR, and Theoretical Investigations

An octacoordinated Fe(II) complex, [FeII(dpphen)2](BF4)2·1.3H2O (1; dpphen = 2,9-bis(pyrazol-1-yl)-1,10-phenanthroline), with a pseudo-D2d-symmetric metal center has been synthesized. Magnetic, high-frequency/-field electron paramagnetic resonance (HF-EPR), and theoretical investigations reveal that 1 is characterized by uniaxial magnetic anisotropy with a negative axial zero-field splitting (ZFS) (D ≈ -6.0 cm-1) and a very small rhombic ZFS (E ≈ 0.04 cm-1). Under applied dc magnetic fields, complex 1 exhibits slow magnetic relaxation at low temperature. Fitting the relaxation time with the Arrhenius mode combining Orbach and tunneling terms affords a good fit to all the data and yields an effective energy barrier (17.0 cm-1) close to the energy gap between the ground state and the first excited state. The origin of the strong uniaxial magnetic anisotropy for 1 has been clearly understood from theoretical calculations. Our study suggests that high-coordinated compounds featuring a D2d-symmetric metal center are promising candidates for mononuclear single-molecule magnets.

Anisotropic Change in the Magnetic Susceptibility of a Dynamic Single Crystal of a Cobalt(II) Complex

Atypically anisotropic and large changes in magnetic susceptibility, along with a change in crystalline shape, were observed in a CoII complex at near room temperature. This was achieved by combining oxalate molecules, acting as rotor, and a CoII ion with unquenched orbital angular momentum. A thermally controlled 90° rotation of the oxalate counter anion triggered a symmetry-breaking ferroelastic phase transition, accompanied by contraction-expansion behavior (ca. 4.5 %) along the long axis of a rod-like single crystal. The molecular rotation induced a minute variation in the coordination geometry around the CoII ion, resulting in an abrupt decrease and a remarkable increase in magnetic susceptibility along the direction perpendicular and parallel to the long axis of the crystal, respectively. Theoretical calculations suggested that such an unusual anisotropic change in magnetic susceptibility was due to a substantial reorientation of magnetic anisotropy induced by slight disruption in the ideal D3 coordination environment of the complex cation.

1,4-Di-aza-bicyclo-[2.2.2]octane-1,4-diium bis-(3-chloro-benzoate).

In the title salt C6H14N2 2+·2C7H4ClO2 −, two 3-chlorobenzoate (3CBA) anions are bridged by one diprotonated 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane-1,4-diium (H2DABCO2+) dication through N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. In this way, a trimeric unit is generated, in which the mean planes of the two 3CBA anions are twisted with respect to each other by a dihedral angle of 59.87 (9)°. The trimeric units are linked into a three-dimensional network via weak C—H⋯O interactions.

Slow Magnetic Relaxation in a Mononuclear Ruthenium(III) Complex

The development of magnetic molecules with long spin reversal/decoherence times highly depends on the understanding of relaxation behavior under different external conditions. Herein, a magnetic study on a RuIII complex (1) is presented. Detailed analysis of the relaxation time and the magneto-heat capacity data suggests that the resonant phonon trapping process dominates the magnetic relaxation in the crystalline sample of 1, slowing down the spin relaxation rate, as further confirmed by the measurements on a ground sample and frozen solution. Thus, it provides a rare example showing that 4d metal-centered mononuclear compounds without second-order anisotropy can display slow magnetic relaxation.