Postsynthetic modification of a coordination compound with a paddlewheel motif via click reaction: DOSY and ESR studies

Abstract Postsynthetic strategy based on organic coupling reactions has been explored for the synthesis of novel coordination complexes with larger dimensions. A discrete coordination species with a paddlewheel motif, dicopper(II) tetracarboxylate Cu 2 (OOC-C 6 H 4 -N 3 ) 4 (quinoline) 2 ( SBU1 ), was covalently modified with methyl propiolate via “Click” reaction to generate a new coordination compound Cu 2 (OOC-C 6 H 4 -C 2 N 3 H-COOCH 3 ) 4 ·(quinoline) 2 ( 1 ). The combination of single-crystal X-ray diffraction, diffusion NMR and ESR has confirmed the success of covalently modifying SBU1 and the retention of the structural integrity after the postsynthetic modification.