Geometrical structure and nonlinear response variations of metal (M = Ni2+, Pd2+, Pt2+) octaphyrin complex derivatives: A DFT study

Nonlinear optical response of designed organometallic complexes of Ni²⁺, Pd²⁺, and Pt²⁺ metal ions with octaphyrin (OP) as ligand were explored by using DFT at CAM-B3LYP/6–311G++(d, p)/LANL2DZ/DEF2SV level of theory. The geometries of these organometallic complexes were studied in terms of effect on molecular framework by metal ion and substituent groups. The optimized geometry of free ligand displays that one of the four pyrrole rings orients out of plane to reduce the steric hindrance. The effect of the substituents on the geometry was found more prominent in the Ni²⁺-OP complexes. The calculations reveal enhancement in the values of dipole moment and hyperpolarizability on introducing electron withdrawing and electron donating groups in ligand framework with maximum enhancement in case of Pt²⁺-OP derivatives. In this study no regular trend was observed for the HOMO and LUMO energies with the second-order hyperpolarizability of M²⁺-OP complexes. However, we have observed that the excited-state properties calculated by using TD-DFT correlate well with the second-order hyperpolarizability values and the dependence was rationalized in terms of two-level model. Thus, from overall calculations we have observed that the designed organometallic complexes display higher polarizability and hyperpolarizability values and can be effective candidates for nonlinear response.