A New Semi-conductive Copper(I) Halide Coordination Polymer: Synthesis, Structure, and Theoretical Study

Abstract  A 1-D hybrid copper(I) halides, [(phen)Cu₃I₃] _n (phen = 1,10-phenanthroline)(1) with novel D6R (double six-membered rings) Cu₆I₆ cores, was synthesized by solvothermal reaction and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. In 1, nitrogen atoms from phen replace two I of CuI₄ tetrahedron to give distorted tetrahedral geometries (CuI₂N₂), then CuI₂N₂ tetrahedron shares corners via μ₃-I to generate an extended 1-D zigzag chain. Two zigzag chains combines with one 1-D (Cu₄I₄) _n chain containing D6R cores via μ₃-I-Cu (from cores) bonds to form the infinite 1-D ribbonlike polymer along the a-axis. Furthermore, the title compound is stabilized by conspicuous C–H···I hydrogen bonds, π–π and d¹⁰–d¹⁰ metallic interactions. Experimental and theoretical optical property investigation indicates that 1 possesses semiconductor property. DFT calculation was executed to probe the electronic structure of 1. To our interest, phen act as a property control species with its π* electrons appear in the forbidden band. Graphical Abstract  A hybrid copper(I) halides [(phen)Cu₃I₃] _n containing D6R cores was structurally determined, which was stabilized by conspicuous C–H···I hydrogen bonds, π–π and d¹⁰–d¹⁰ metallic interactions and possesses semiconductor property. DFT calculation indicate phen act as a property control species with its π* electrons appear in the forbidden band. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.