X-ray
characterization techniques are invaluable for probing material
characteristics and properties, and have been instrumental in discoveries
across materials research. However, there is a current lack of understanding
of how X-ray-induced effects manifest in small molecular crystals.
This is of particular concern as new X-ray sources with ever-increasing
brilliance are developed. In this paper, systematic studies of X-ray–matter
interactions are reported on two industrially important catalysts,
[Ir(COD)Cl]2 and [Rh(COD)Cl]2, exposed to radiation
in X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)
experiments. From these complementary techniques, changes to structure,
chemical environments, and electronic structure are observed as a
function of X-ray exposure, allowing comparisons of stability to be
made between the two catalysts. Radiation dose is estimated using
recent developments to the RADDOSE-3D software for small molecules
and applied to powder XRD and XPS experiments. Further insights into
the electronic structure of the catalysts and changes occurring as
a result of the irradiation are drawn from density functional theory
(DFT). The techniques combined here offer much needed insight into
the X-ray-induced effects in transition-metal catalysts and, consequently,
their intrinsic stabilities. There is enormous potential to extend
the application of these methods to other small molecular systems
of scientific or industrial relevance.