Silver and Gold Complexes with a New 1,10‐Phenanthroline Analogue N‐Heterocyclic Carbene: A Combined Structural, Theoretical, and Photophysical Study

: Unusual coordination for gold: an imidazolium salt was synthesized and used as a precursor for an N-heterocyclic carbene, which can be considered as the carbene analogue of 1,10-phenanthroline. Like the diimine congener, this ligand gives luminescent metal complexes. Remarkably, the Au(III) complex features a gold atom in an unusual environment: it is surrounded by six donor atoms, two of which interact electrostatically with the Au atom.