A lantern complex of palladium(II) as a host for anion inclusion

Reaction of [PdCl2(PhCN)2] with the ligand LL = 1,3-C6H4(CONMe-4-C5H4N)2 gave the neutral dipalladium(II) macrocycle, trans,trans-[Pd2Cl4(μ-LL)2], with a short separation between the palladium atoms [Pd(1)⋯Pd(2) = 3.63 Å] or the lantern complex [Pd2(μ-LL)4]4+, which acts as a host for chloride ion inclusion in forming the complex [Pd2(μ-Cl)(μ-LL)4]3+, which has a much larger separation between the palladium atoms [Pd⋯Pd = 6.56 Å].