Oximato bridged Rh^III2M^II and Rh^IIIM^I species (M^II= Mn, Co, Ni; M^I = Cu, Ag)

Abstract

The reaction of [RhCl₂(HPhL)(PhL)] with M^II(ClO₄)₂·6_H2O in presence of alkali has furnished trinuclear [RhCl₂(PhL)₂]₂M(H₂O)₂·H₂O (HPhL is phenylazobenzaldoxime; M = Mn, Co, Ni). A similar reaction with MI(PPh₃)₂NO₃ yielded binuclear [RhCl₂(PhL)₂]M(PPh₃)₂ (M = Cu, Ag). In these molecules the oximato group acts as a bridge between Rh^III (bonded at N) and M^II or M^I (bonded at O). In structurally characterized [Rh^IIICl₂(PhL)₂]₂Mn(H₂O)₂·H₂O the centrosymmetric distorted octahedral MnO₆ coordination sphere is spanned by four oximato oxygen atoms and two water molecules lying in trans position. In the lattice the neighbouring molecules are held together by H₂O-H₂O-H₂O hydrogen bonds generating infinite zigzag chains. The manganese atoms lie parallel to the C-axis, the shortest Mn...Mn distance being 7.992 Å. Magnetic exchange interactions if any are small as seen in room temperature magnetic moments. The manganese system displays a strong EPR signal near g = 2.00. In the complex [RhCl₂(PhL)₂]Cu(PPh₃)₂ the copper atom is coordinated to two oximato oxygen atoms and the two phosphorus atoms in a distorted tetrahedral geometry. The softness of the phosphine ligand is believed to sustain the stable coordination of hard oximato oxygen to soft Cu^I. The coordination sphere of the RhIII atom in both the complexes is uniformly trans-RhN₄Cl₂.