Two complexes, [WS4Cu5I3(bbd)2]
n
(1) and [(WS4Cu3I)2(bbd)3]
n
·n(DMF) (2), with
one-dimensional polymeric chain structures containing hexanuclear
and tetranuclear clusters linked by flexible 1,4-bis(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)butane
(bbd) ligands have been synthesized in facile one-pot reactions at
room temperature, together with the molybdenum analogue of 2. The only significant difference in the syntheses of the two tungsten
complexes is the 5:1 or 3:1 molar ratio of copper(I) to [WS4]2–, the other experimental factors being kept
constant. The observed products reflect the stoichiometric Cu:W ratio
used. All three complexes were characterized by IR and UV–vis
spectroscopy, thermal and elemental analyses, and single-crystal X-ray
diffraction. Complex 1 contains an unusual and surprisingly
unsymmetrical WS4Cu5I3 cluster in
which five Cu atoms bridge all but one of the six S···S
edges of the WS4 tetrahedron and the three I atoms all
have different coordination modes (terminal, μ2 and
μ3); it consists of two face-sharing WS3Cu3I distorted cubes, in one of which a Cu···I
edge is opened up instead of being bonded, this Cu atom (shared by
the two cubes) having an additional terminal iodo ligand. Complex 2 is the first reported example of a polymer containing (S=)MS3M′3X cubes linked by organic ligands; pairs
of these cube clusters are connected by pairs of bbd ligands, and
the (cluster)2(bbd)2 units are assembled into
chains by single bbd bridges. In these and previously reported complexes,
the bbd bridging ligand displays considerable flexibility, enabling
it to support a range of discrete oligomeric and polymeric structures.
X-ray powder diffraction shows that 2 is consistently
obtained as a mixture of two polymorphs, and the same has been found
for the corresponding molybdenum complex [(MoS4Cu3I)2(bbd)3]
n
·n(DMF) (3), for which the second polymorph
has been structurally characterized by single-crystal diffraction
using synchrotron radiation. The two polymorphs have essentially identical
polymer chain structures, with different packing arrangements of the
chains and different symmetry properties.