Synthesis and spectroscopic characterization of copper(II)-nitrito complexes with hydrotris(pyrazolyl)borate and related coligands

This study focuses on the geometric (molecular) structures, spectroscopic properties, and electronic structures of copper(II)-nitrito complexes as a function of second coordination sphere effects using a set of closely related coligands. With anionic hydrotris(pyrazolyl)borate ligands, one nitrite is bound to copper(II). Depending on the steric demand of the coligand, the coordination mode is either symmetric or asymmetric bidentate, which leads to different ground states of the resulting complexes as evident from EPR spectroscopy. The vibrational spectra of these compounds are assigned using isotope substitution and DFT calculations. The results demonstrate that nu sym(N-O) occurs at higher energy than nu asym(N-O), which is different from the literature assignments for related compounds. UV-vis absorption and MCD spectra are presented and analyzed with the help of TD-DFT calculations. The principal binding modes of nitrite to Cu(II) and Cu(I) are also investigated applying DFT. Using a neutral tris(pyrazolyl)methane ligand, two nitrite ligands are bound to copper. In this case, a very unusual binding mode is observed where one nitrite is eta1-O and the other one is eta1-N bound. This allows to study the properties of coordinated nitrite as a function of binding mode in one complex. The N-coordination mode is easily identified from vibrational spectroscopy, where N-bound nitrite shows a large shift of nu asym(N-O) to >1400 cm-1, which is a unique spectroscopic feature. The optical spectra of this compound exhibit an intense band around 300 nm, which might be attributable to a nitrite to Cu(II) CT transition. Finally, using a bidentate neutral bis(pyrazolyl)methane ligand, two eta1-O coordinated nitrite ligands are observed. The vibrational and optical (UV-vis and MCD) spectra of this compound are presented and analyzed.     

Understanding the Zero-Field Splitting of Mononuclear Manganese(II) Complexes from Combined EPR Spectroscopy and Quantum Chemistry

This micro-review is devoted to the studies of the electronic structure, especially the zero-field splitting, of mononuclear Mn(II) complexes by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and quantum chemistry.     

Ab initio study of intriguing coordination complexes: a metal field theory picture

Two noninnocent ligands are theoretically studied using wave function based methods to demonstrate their ability to undergo singlet-triplet transition under the effect of an external charge mimicking the electrostatic role of a metal ion. It is shown that the singlet-triplet energy difference is very sensitive to the metal ion charge which tunes the HOMO-LUMO energy difference of these ligands. While the latter is reduced as the charge is enhanced in the glyoxal-bis-(2-mercaptoanil) (gma) ligand, it is increased in the bis(imino)pyridine diradical ligand. This result shows a strong analogy with the crystal field theory, interchanging the roles played by the metal ion and the ligand. As the metal ion is explicitly treated in the Fe(gma)CN complex, this analogy can be pushed further resulting in a "metal field theory" conceptualization.     

Vibrational markers for the open-shell character of transition metal bis-dithiolenes: an infrared, resonance raman, and quantum chemical study

Transition metal complexes involving the benzene-1,2-dithiol (L(2-)) and Sellmann's 3,5-di-tert-butylbenzene-1,2-dithiol(L(Bu 2-)) ligands have been studied by UV-vis, infrared (IR), and resonance Raman (rR) spectroscopies. Raman spectra were obtained in resonance with the intervalence charge transfer (IVCT) bands in the near-infrared region and ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) bands in the near-UV region. Geometry optimization and frequency calculations using density functional theory (DFT) have been performed for [M(L)(2)](z) and [M(L(Bu))(2)](z) species (M = Ni, Pd, Pt, Co, Cu, Au, z = -1; M = Au, z = 0). On the basis of frequency calculations and normal-mode analysis, we have assigned the most important totally symmetric vibrations as well as corresponding overtone and combination bands that appear in rR spectra of compounds [Ni(L)(2)](1-), [M(L(Bu))(2)](1-) (M = Ni, Pt, Co, Cu). Experimental values of dimensionless normal coordinate displacements in excited states have been determined by fitting of rR spectra together with the absorption band shape, based on the time-dependent theory of Heller. Time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) and multireference post-Hartree-Fock ab initio calculations, using the difference dedicated configuration interaction (MR-DDCI) method, were carried out to evaluate dimensionless normal coordinate displacements quantum chemically. The calculations show encouraging agreement with the experimental values. The large distortions along several normal modes led to significant vibronic broadening of IVCT and LMCT bands, and the broadening was accounted for in the deconvolution of the absorption spectra. The presence of an intense rR band around approximately 1100 cm(-1) was found to be a reliable marker for the presence of sulfur-based radicals.     

Spectroscopic and theoretical study of a mononuclear manganese(III) complex exhibiting a tetragonally compressed geometry

Inelastic neutron scattering and high-field electron paramagnetic resonance data are presented for [Mn(bpia)(OAc)(OCH(3))](PF(6)), where bpia is bis(picolyl)(N-methylimidazole-2-yl)amine. Modeling of the data to the conventional fourth-order spin-Hamiltonian yielded the following parameters: D = 3.526(3) cm(-1), E = 0.588(6) cm(-1), B(0)(4) = -0.00084(7) cm(-1), B(2)( 4)= -0.002(2) cm(-1), (4)(4) = -0.0082(5) cm(-1), g(x) = 1.98(1), g(y) = 1.952(6), and g(z) = 1.978(5). The complex is of particular interest given the biochemical activity and the unusual stereochemistry distinguished by a rare example of a tetragonally compressed octahedron and a pronounced angular distortion imposed by the tetradentate tripodal bpia ligand. Ligand field, density functional theory, and complete active space self-consistent field ab initio calculations are presented that aim to relate the spectroscopic data to the molecular geometry.     

Intercalation of Toluidines into α-Zirconium Hydrogenphosphate

Intercalates of o-, m-, and p-toluidine into α-Zr(HPO₄)₂ · H₂O were prepared and characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis and infrared spectroscopy. As follows from IR, toludine molecules are protonated in the interlayer space. Toluidine molecules are arranged in a bimolecular way in the intercalates containing more than 1.5 toluidine molecules per Zr atom. On the other hand, a monolayer of the toluidine molecules is supposed in the intercalates with less than one toluidine molecule per Zr atom.     

Theoretical insights into the magnetostructural correlations in Mn3-based single-molecule magnets

Density functional theory (DFT) and the valence bond configuration interaction (VBCI) model have been applied to the oximato-based Mn(III)(3)O single-molecule magnets (SMMs), allowing one to correlate the Mn(III)-Mn(III) exchange coupling energy (J) with the bridging geometry in terms of two structural angles: the Mn-O-N-Mn torsion angle (γ) and the Mn(3) out-of-plane shift of O (angle δθ). Using DFT, a two-dimensional (γ, δθ) energy surface of J is derived and shown to yield essentially good agreement with the reported J values deduced from magnetic susceptibility data on trigonal oximato-bridged Mn(3) SMMs. VBCI is used to understand and analyze the DFT results. It is shown that the exchange coupling in these systems is governed by a spin-polarization mechanism inducing a pronounced and dominating ferromagnetic exchange via the oximato bridge as opposed to kinetic exchange, which favors a weaker and antiferromagnetic exchange via the bridging oxide. In the light of these results, a discussion of the exchange coupling in the Mn(6) family of the SMM with a record demagnetization barrier is given.     

Chlorophyll excitation energies and structural stability of the CP47 antenna of photosystem II: a case study in the first-principles simulation of light-harvesting complexes

Natural photosynthesis relies on light harvesting and excitation energy transfer by specialized pigment–protein complexes. Their structure and the electronic properties of the embedded chromophores define the mechanisms of energy transfer. An important example of a pigment–protein complex is CP47, one of the integral antennae of the oxygen-evolving photosystem II (PSII) that is responsible for efficient excitation energy transfer to the PSII reaction center. The charge-transfer excitation induced among coupled reaction center chromophores resolves into charge separation that initiates the electron transfer cascade driving oxygenic photosynthesis. Mapping the distribution of site energies among the 16 chlorophyll molecules of CP47 is essential for understanding excitation energy transfer and overall antenna function. In this work, we demonstrate a multiscale quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) approach utilizing full time-dependent density functional theory with modern range-separated functionals to compute for the first time the excitation energies of all CP47 chlorophylls in a complete membrane-embedded cyanobacterial PSII dimer. The results quantify the electrostatic effect of the protein on the site energies of CP47 chlorophylls, providing a high-level quantum chemical excitation profile of CP47 within a complete computational model of “near-native” cyanobacterial PSII. The ranking of site energies and the identity of the most red-shifted chlorophylls (B3, followed by B1) differ from previous hypotheses in the literature and provide an alternative basis for evaluating past approaches and semiempirically fitted sets. Given that a lot of experimental studies on CP47 and other light-harvesting complexes utilize extracted samples, we employ molecular dynamics simulations of isolated CP47 to identify which parts of the polypeptide are most destabilized and which pigments are most perturbed when the antenna complex is extracted from PSII. We demonstrate that large parts of the isolated complex rapidly refold to non-native conformations and that certain pigments (such as chlorophyll B1 and β-carotene h1) are so destabilized that they are probably lost upon extraction of CP47 from PSII. The results suggest that the properties of isolated CP47 are not representative of the native complexed antenna. The insights obtained from CP47 are generalizable, with important implications for the information content of experimental studies on biological light-harvesting antenna systems.

Advanced QM/MM simulations explore the excited states of a photosynthetic light-harvesting antenna in its physiologically complexed state and model the consequences of extraction on conformational and electronic properties.