Synthesis, structural analysis, and magnetic behaviour of three fumarate bridged coordination polymers: five-fold interpenetrated diamond-like net of NiII, sheets of NiII and CoII.

The hydrothermal reactions of Ni(NO(3))(2).6H(2)O, disodium fumarate (fum) and 1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)ethane (bpe)/1,3-bis(4-pyridyl)propane (bpp) in aqueous-methanol medium yield one 3-D and one 2-D metal-organic hybrid material, [Ni(fum)(bpe)] (1) and [Ni(fum)(bpp)(H(2)O)] (2), respectively. Complex possesses a novel unprecedented structure, the first example of an "unusual mode" of a five-fold distorted interpenetrated network with metal-ligand linkages where the four six-membered windows in each adamantane-type cage are different. The structural characterization of complex 2 evidences a buckled sheet where nickel ions are in a distorted octahedral geometry, with two carboxylic groups, one acting as a bis-chelate, the other as a bis-monodentate ligand. The metal ion completes the coordination sphere through one water molecule and two bpp nitrogens in cis position. Variable-temperature magnetic measurements of complexes 1 and 2 reveal the existence of very weak antiferromagnetic intramolecular interactions and/or the presence of single-ion zero field splitting (D) of isolated Ni(II) ions in both the compounds. Experimentally, both the J parameters are close, comparable and very small. Considering zero-field splitting of Ni(II), the calculated D values are in agreement with values reported in the literature for Ni(II) ions. Complex 3, [[Co(phen)]](2)(fum)(2)](phen = 1,10-phenanthroline) is obtained by diffusing methanolic solution of 1,10-phenanthroline on an aqueous layer of disodium fumarate and Co(NO(3))(2).6H(2)O. It consists of dimeric Co(II)(phen) units, doubly bridged by carboxylate groups in a distorted syn-syn fashion. These fumarate anions act as bis-chelates to form corrugated sheets. The 2D layer has a (4,4) topology, with the nodes represented by the centres of the dimers. The magnetic data were fitted ignoring the very weak coupling through the fumarate pathway and using a dimer model.