Structures and fluorescence of two new hetero-dinuclear lanthanide(III) complexes derived from a Schiff-base ligand

Two isostructural dinuclear lanthanide(III)/Schiff-base complexes [{Ce1.5Eu0.5(clapi)}2]·2CH3CN (1) and [{La1.5Eu0.5(clapi)}2]·2CH3CN (2) {H3clapi = 2-(5-chloride-2-hydroxyphenyl)-1,3-bis[4-(5-chloride-2-hydroxyphenyl)-3-azabut-3-enyl]-1,3-imidazolidine} have been prepared by template procedure and characterized by elemental analyses, ICP, IR, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. Lanthanide ions Ce(III) and Eu(III) in 1, and La(III) and Eu(III) in 2 are disordered with occupancies 0.75 for Ce and 0.25 for Eu in 1; 0.75 for La and 0.25 for Eu in 2. In the compounds, each lanthanide is coordinated to four N and four O atoms from two clapi3− ligands, forming a distorted square antiprism. Two phenol oxygen atoms from the middle arms of the two heptadentate μ2-bridging ligands connect the two Ce(Eu) atoms in 1, and La(Eu) in 2. The solution of the two complexes in CH2Cl2 exhibits red fluorescence from Eu3+ ions at 77 K, very weak at room temperature.