Cyano-bridged assemblies induced by positive ions: Hydrothermal syntheses, crystal and powder X-ray structures, and magnetic properties

By using environmental friendly Na3W(CN)8·4H2O as a cyanide source, hydrothermal reaction of CoCl2·6H2O and 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) resulted in a cobalt aggregate [CoII(CN)2(phen)]n (1). Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses showed that the framework of 1 is a one-dimensional chiral helical substructure. The self-assembly of NiCl2·6H2O, 2,2’2′-bipyridine (bipy) with Na3W(CN)8·4H2O in superheated water solution generated molecular aggregate [NiII(CN)(bipy)2]2[NiII(CN)4]n (2). For complexes 1 and 2, the comparison between powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and a simulated on from crystal data confirmed that the crystal phase was pure. Magnetic measurements indicate that in the low temperature, complex 1 shows weak ferromagnetic interaction, indicative of spin-canting behavior.