Polymorphism and solvolysis of 2‐cyano‐3‐[4‐(N,N‐diethyl­amino)­phenyl]­prop‐2‐ene­thio­amide

Two new polymorph forms, (Ia) and (Ib), of the title compound, C₁₄H₁₇N₃S, and its solvate with aceto­nitrile, C₁₄H₁₇N₃S·0.25C₂H₃N, (Ic), have been investigated. Crystals of the two polymorphs were grown from different solvents, viz. ethanol and N,N‐di­methyl­form­amide, respectively. The polymorphs have different orientations of the thio­amide group relative to the CN substituent, with s‐cis and s‐trans geometry of the C=C—C=S diene fragment, respectively. Compound (Ic) contains two independent mol­ecules, A and B, with s‐cis geometry, and the solvate mol­ecule lies on a twofold axis. The core of each mol­ecule is slightly non‐planar; the dihedral angles between the conjugated C=C—CN linkage and the phenyl ring, and between this linkage and the thio­amide group are 13.4 (2) and 12.0 (2)° in (Ia), 14.0 (2) and 18.2 (2)° in (Ib), 2.3 (3) and 12.7 (4)° in molecule A of (Ic), and 23.2 (3) and 8.1 (4)° in molecule B of (Ic). As a result of strong conjugation between donor and acceptor parts, the substituted phenyl rings have noticeable quinoid character. In (Ib), there exists a very strong intramolecular steric interaction (H⋯H = 1.95 Å) between the bridging and thio­amide parts of the mol­ecule, which makes such a form less stable. In the crystal structure of (Ia), intermolecular N—H⋯N and N—H⋯S hydrogen bonds link mol­ecules into infinite tapes along the 10] direction. In (Ib), such intermolecular hydrogen bonds link mol­ecules into infinite (101) planes. In (Ic), intermolecular N—H⋯N hydrogen bonds link mol­ecules A and B into dimers, which are connected via N—H⋯S hydrogen bonds and form infinite chains along the c direction.