NiII mol-ecular complex with a tetra-dentate amino-guanidine-derived Schiff base ligand: structural, spectroscopic and electrochemical studies and photoelectric response.

The new mol-ecular nickel(II) complex, namely, {4-bromo-2-[({N'-[(2-oxidobenzylidene)amino]carbamimidoyl}imino)methyl]phenolato}nickel(II) N,N-di-methyl-formamide solvate monohydrate, [Ni(C15H11BrN4O2)]·C3H7NO·H2O, (I), crystallizes in the triclinic space group P with one mol-ecule per asymmetric unit. The guanidine ligand is a product of Schiff base condensation between amino-guanidine, salicyl-aldehyde and 5-bromo-salicyl-aldehyde templated by Ni2+ ions. The chelating ligand mol-ecule is deprotonated at the phenol O atoms and coordinates the metal centre through the two azomethine N and two phenolate O atoms in a cis-NiN2O2 square-planar configuration [average(Ni-N/O) = 1.8489 Å, cis angles in the range 83.08 (5)-95.35 (5)°, trans angles of 177.80 (5) and 178.29 (5)°]. The complex mol-ecule adopts an almost planar conformation. In the crystal, a complicated hydrogen-bonded network is formed through N-H⋯N/O and O-H⋯O inter-molecular inter-actions. Complex (I) was also characterized by FT-IR and 1H NMR spectroscopy. It undergoes an NiII ↔ NiIII redox reaction at E 1/2 = +0.295 V (vs Ag/AgCl) in methanol solution. In a thin film with a free surface, complex (I) shows a fast photoelectric response upon exposure to visible light with a maximum photovoltage of ∼178 mV. © Vassilyeva et al. 2022.