Ferromagnetic oxovanadium(IV) complexes chelated with tetrahalosalen ligands

Five oxovanadium(IV) complexes [VO(X₄salen)] have been prepared and characterized, where each benzene ring was substituted with two halogen atoms in salen (H₂salen = N,N′-disalicylideneethylenediamine). The X-ray diffraction study on 3,3′,5,5′-tetrachloro-, 3,3′,5,5′-tetrabromo-, and 4,4′,6,6′-tetrachlorosalen derivatives clarified their polymeric structure with the (-VO-)_n repeating unit. The interatomic V···V distances are 3.710(3), 3.695(3), and 3.749(3) Å, respectively, being shorter than that of known [VO(salpn)] (3.83 Å; H₂salpn = N,N′-disalicylidenepropylenediamine). The exchange coupling parameters (J) were determined by fitting the magnetic susceptibility data to the one-dimensional ferromagnetic model, giving 2J/k_B = 8.2-16 K, which are the largest in the [VO(salen)] and [VO(salpn)] family.