Polymorphic forms of a gold(I) arylacetylide complex with contrasting phosphorescent characteristics.

The spectroscopic properties and crystal structures of the gold(I) arylacetylide complexes [(R(3)P)Au(Ctbd1;CAr)] (R = Cy, Ar = 4-nitrophenyl, 1; 4-trifluoromethylphenyl, 2; pentafluorophenyl, 3; R = Ph, Ar = 4-nitrophenyl, 4) have been examined. The dipole-allowed and -forbidden transitions of 1 (4 in parentheses) at lambda(max) 340 (336) and ca. 485 (470) nm in CH(2)Cl(2) solution at 298 K are assigned to the singlet and triplet intraligand charge transfer (ILCT) transitions of the 4-nitrophenylacetylide moiety, whereas 2 (3 in parentheses) shows localized singlet and triplet acetylenic pipi transitions at lambda(max) 287 (276) and 426 nm, respectively. Two polymorphs of 1 with contrasting phosphorescent characteristics have been identified. At 298 K, the emissive form of 1, as well as 2-4, are highly phosphorescent with peak maximum at 504, 425, 521, and 495 nm, respectively; the other polymorph of 1 is nonemissive at 298 K but emission is detected at 77 K with peak maximum at 486 nm. Crystallographic studies reveal that the major differences between the emissive and nonemissive forms of 1 are the orientations of the molecular dipoles and the dihedral angles between neighboring 4-nitrophenyl moieties. Crystal 2 is isostructural to the nonemissive form of 1, but does not display polymorphism. The molecular planes of two neighboring lumophores are coplanar in the emissive form of 1, parallel in 4, and nearly perpendicular (78.6 degrees ) to each other in the nonemissive form of 1. Both the nature of the excited state and the dihedral angle between adjacent [Au(Ctbd1;CAr)] moieties determine the phosphorescent properties of these molecular crystals.