Bidentate enantiopure Schiff base ligands, (R or S)-N-1-(Ar)ethyl-2-oxo-1-naphthaldiminato-κ(2)N,O, diastereoselectively yield Δ/Λ-chiral four-coordinated, non-planar Cu(N^O)2 complexes [Ar = C6H5 R/S-L1, m-C6H4OMe R-L2, p-C6H4OMe R/S-L3, and p-C6H4Br R/S-L4]. Two N,O-chelate ligands coordinate to the copper(II) atom in distorted square-planar mode, and induce metal-centered Δ/Λ-chirality at the copper atom in the C2-symmetric complexes. In the solid state, the R-L1 (or R-L4) ligand chirality diastereoselectively induces a Λ-Cu configuration in Λ-Cu-R-L1 (or Λ-Cu-R-L4), the S-L1 ligand a Δ-Cu configuration in Δ-Cu-S-L1, forming enantiopure crystals upon crystallization. Conversely, the R-L2 ligand combines both Λ/Δ-Cu-R-L2 as a diastereomeric pair in the crystals. In solution, electronic circular dichroism (CD) spectra show full or partial diastereoselectivity towards Λ-Cu for R ligands and towards Δ-Cu for S ligands. The electronic CD spectra measured on all complexes obtained from R ligands (or S ligands), e.g. Cu-R-L1, Cu-R-L2, Cu-R-L3, and Cu-R-L4 (or Cu-S-L1, Cu-S-L3, and Cu-S-L4), show consistent spectral features. TDDFT calculations of the electronic CD spectra for the diastereomers Λ-Cu-R-L1 and Δ-Cu-R-L1 suggest that the CD spectra are largely dominated by the configuration at the metal center (Λ vs. Δ). The experimental CD spectrum of Cu-R-L1 agrees well with the one calculated for the Λ-Cu-R-L1 configuration. Cyclic voltammetry of Cu-R-L1 reveals a quasi-reversible redox wave corresponding to one-electron transfer for the [Cu(II)L2](0)/[Cu(I)L2](-1) couple in acetonitrile. DSC analyses for the complexes show an exothermic peak between 377 and 478 K (ΔH = -12 to -43 kJ mol(-1)), corresponding to a phase transformation from distorted square-planar/tetrahedral to regular tetrahedral geometry on heating.

Enantiopure bis[{(R or S)-N-1-(Ar)ethyl-2-oxo-1-naphthaldiminato-κ(2)N,O}]nickel(ii) complexes {Ar = C6H5 ( or ), p-OMeC6H4 ( or ), and p-BrC6H4 ( or )} are synthesized from the reactions between (R or S)-N-1-(Ar)ethyl-2-oxo-1-naphthaldimine and nickel(ii) acetate. Circular-dichroism spectra and their density-functional theoretical simulation reveal the expected mirror image relationship between the enantiomeric pairs / and / in solution. CD spectra are dominated by the metal-centered Λ- or Δ-chirality of non-planar four-coordinated nickel, this latter being in turn dictated by the ligand chirality. Single crystal structure determination for and shows that there are two symmetry-independent molecules (A and B) in each asymmetric unit that give a Z' = 2 structure. Two asymmetric and chiral bidentate N^O-chelate Schiff base ligands coordinate to the nickel atom in a distorted square planar N2O2-coordination sphere. The conformational difference between the symmetry-independent molecules arises from the "up-or-down" folding of the naphthaldiminato ligand with respect to the coordination plane, which creates right- (P) or left-handed (M) helical conformations. Overall, the combination of ligand chirality, chirality at the metal and ligand folding gives rise to discrete metal helicates of preferred helicity in a selective way. Cyclic voltammograms (CV) show an oxidation wave at ca. 1.30 V for the [Ni(L)2]/[Ni(L)2](+) couple, and a reduction wave at ca. -0.35 V for the [Ni(L)2]/[Ni(L)2](-) couple in acetonitrile.

Enantiopure dinuclear μ‐aqua‐tetrakis[(R or S)‐N‐1‐(Ar)ethylsalicylaldiminato]di‐Λ‐ or ‐Δ‐nickel(II) [Ar = C6H5 (R‐1/S‐1), p‐MeOC6H4 (R‐2/S‐2), p‐ClC6H4 (R‐3/S‐3), p‐BrC6H4 (R‐4)] complexes have been synthesized from the reaction between (R or S)‐N‐1‐(Ar)ethylsalicylaldimine and nickel(II) acetate. Their CD spectra demonstrate chirality transfer from the ligands to the metal ions and a mirror‐image relationship for the enantiomeric pair R‐3/S‐3 in thf. DSC analyses show that the complexes exhibit an irreversible dissociation to the mononuclear species, which in turn undergo decomposition. The 1H NMR spectra reveal the presence of four salicylaldiminates, one aqua ligand, and two molecules of methanol in each dinuclear complex. They also confirm the existence of a dinuclear‐bridged aqua bis‐octahedral NiII complex in solution. The IR spectra in CH2Cl2 show a very strong band at around 2306 cm–1 due to the νO–H of the bridged aqua ligand. The X‐ray structures of R‐2, S‐2, R‐3, and S‐3 confirm the formation of dinuclear compounds comprising two nickel ions, four salicylaldiminates, and one aqua ligand with two molecules of methanol (or water in S‐2). Each nickel ion is surrounded by two N,O‐chelating salicylaldiminates, a bridging salicyl‐O atom from the neighboring nickel ion, and a bridging aqua ligand in a distorted octahedral polyhedron. Analyses of the absolute structures reveal a diastereomeric induction of the R or S ligand giving a Λ or Δ configuration at the nickel atoms in R‐2/3 or S‐2/3 that is independent of the ligand substituents.

A series of ten chiral aryl benzyl sulfoxides with perfluorinated aryl or benzyl rings, obtained by enantioselective oxidation of sulfides, has been investigated by means of electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectroscopy and time-dependent DFT (TDDFT) calculations. The (per)fluorination of the aromatic rings has a large impact on the conformer population, the molecular orbitals shape, and the character of electronic transitions. In this series, the transition responsible for the “sulfoxide primary” CD band has a large charge transfer (CT) character, as demonstrated by the CT metric index ΓNTO. As a consequence, global DFT hybrids such as B3LYP are largely inaccurate in the prediction of excited states; nevertheless, a correct simulation of CD spectra may be achieved by using range-separated functionals such as CAM-B3LYP. The use of the empirical Mislow's rule for assigning the absolute configuration is strongly discouraged for this class of compounds

We designed a stereodynamic system, where the chirality of the analyte serves as a template for the helicity of the first coordination sphere of Co(ii). Giant VCD bands induced by Co(ii) allow the measurement of a completely significant and conclusive VCD spectrum in only a few seconds and/or on minute quantities of the analyte. This paves the way for the development of similar protocols, overcoming the limitations due to weak VCD signals for the assignment of absolute configurations.

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We used a very simplified electrostatic model based on charge and polarizability of atoms and groups on an organic ligand around a lanthanide ion to predict the near-infrared electronic circular dichroism (NIR ECD) spectra of Yb (a monoelectronic ion). We tuned our method by using two widely different complexes. The first was the heterobimetallic species CsYb(hfbc) [hfbc=(-)-3-heptafluorobutyrylcamphorate], in which the ligand is a diketonate and, as such, is endowed with a chromophore with strong UV absorption (π-π ). Its oxygen atoms define a square antiprism, which provides a symmetric coordination polyhedron. The second system was Yb DOTMA [DOTMA=(1R,4R,7R,10R)-α,α',α'',α'''-tetramethyl-1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid], a chiral Yb analogue of Gd DOTA (DOTA=1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid), in which the ligand lacks relevant electronic transitions and provides a dissymmetric cage. The relative weights of dynamic (ligand polarization) and static contributions to Yb NIR ECD were evaluated, and the spectra appear to have been well predicted by theory through the introduction of a heuristic weight factor. To validate the approach and to confirm the value of the weight factor, we applied it to two other compounds, namely, Na Yb(BINOLate) and Yb(BINOLAM) [BINOLate=2,2'-dihydroxy-1,1'-binaphthyl; BINOLAM=3,3'-bis(diethylaminomethyl)-1-1'-bi-2-naphthol].

Pseudocontact shifts (PCS) contain a wealth of geometric information, which makes paramagnetic NMR one of the best methods for accurate geometric determinations in solution. It is well-known that PCS are intrinsically linked to Fermi contact (FC) shifts, and the separation of the two terms is achieved through linearization methods, which heavily rely on (a) isostructurality (even concerning a labile axial site) and (b) the validity of Bleaney's constants. Recently we proposed a method that circumvents both assumptions in the case of axially symmetric complexes, and presently we generalize it to lower symmetry. Our method is model-free and thus does not rely on any structural hypothesis. Our results compare very well with recently published data obtained through an accurate ab initio approach.