Bis[N,N'-(2-chlorobenzylidene)ethylenediamine-kappa2N,N']copper(I) dichloridocuprate(I) acetonitrile solvate.

The 1:1 adduct of N,N'-bis(2-chlorobenzylidene)ethylenediamine (cb2en) with copper(I) chloride proves to be an ionic compound with Cu(I)-centred cations and anions, [Cu(C16H14Cl2N2)2][CuCl2] x CH3CN. In the cation, the Cu(I) atom has a flattened tetrahedral coordination geometry, with a small bite angle for the chelating ligands, which form a double-helical arrangement around the metal centre. The anion is almost linear, as expected. The packing of the cations involves intermolecular pi-pi interactions, which lead to columns of translationally related cations along the shortest unit-cell axis, with anions and solvent molecules in channels between them.