Studies on mono- and dinuclear bisoxime copper complexes with different coordination geometries

Two new mono- and dinuclear Cu(II) complexes, namely CuL¹]·0.5H₂O (1) and (Cu₂(L²)₂)(DMF)]·0.5DMF (2) (H₂L¹ = 1,2-bis{(Z)-(3-methyl-5-oxo-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazolidin-4(4H)-yl)(phenyl)]methylene-aminooxy}ethane; H₂L² = 1,3-bis{(Z)-(3-methyl-5-oxo-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazolidin-4(4H)-yl)(phenyl)] methyleneaminooxy}propane), have been synthesized and characterized by X-ray crystallography. The unit cell of complex 1 contains two crystallographically independent but chemically identical CuL¹] molecules and one crystalline water molecule, showing a slightly distorted square-planar coordination geometry and forming a wave-like pattern running along the a-axis via hydrogen bonding and π···π stacking interactions. Complex 2 has a dinuclear structure, comprising two Cu(II) atoms, two completely deprotonated phenolate bisoxime (L²)²⁻ moieties (in the form of enol), and both coordinated and hemi-crystalline DMF molecules. Complex 2 has square-planar and square-pyramidal geometries around the two copper centers, whose basic coordination planes are almost perpendicular and form an infinite three-dimensional supramolecular network structure involving intermolecular C–H···N, C–H···O, and C–H···π(Ph) hydrogen bonding and π···π stacking interactions of neighboring pyrazole rings.