A novel decanuclear Co(ii) cluster with adamantane-like metallic skeleton supported by 8-hydroxyquinoline and in situ formed CO32− anions

Abstract

A novel decanuclear Co(II) cluster, [Co₁₀(Q)₁₂(μ₆-CO₃)₄]·2.5DMF (1) (Q = 8-hydroxyquinoline), has been synthesized under solvothermal conditions and characterized by powder XRD, TGA and IR spectroscopy. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis shows that 1 represents a new type of decanuclear cobalt cluster with an approximate supertruncated tetrahedral shape coordinated with coexisted Q ligands and in situ formed μ₆-bridging CO₃²⁻ anions. Meanwhile, 1 is the largest aggregate in metal–Q coordination chemistry. Another distinguishing feature of 1 is the adamantane-like metallic skeleton with point symbol {6³}₂{6}₃, which is observed in the polynuclear metal complexes for the first time. Furthermore, it is considered that the in situ formed CO₃²⁻ anions have a crucial effect on the formation of the resultant unexpected polynuclear structures. The magnetic studies show that antiferromagnetic (AF) interactions exist within 1.