A neutral hybrid macrocycle with two trans‐positioned N‐heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) and two pyridine donors hosts copper in three oxidation states (+I–+III) in a series of structurally characterized complexes (1–3). Redox interconversion of [LCu]+/2+/3+ is electrochemically (quasi)reversible and occurs at moderate potentials (E1/2=−0.45 V and +0.82 V (vs. Fc/Fc+)). A linear CNHC‐Cu‐CNHC arrangement and hemilability of the two pyridine donors allows the ligand to adapt to the different stereoelectronic and coordination requirements of CuI versus CuII/CuIII. Analytical methods such as NMR, UV/Vis, IR, electron paramagnetic resonance, and Cu Kβ high‐energy‐resolution fluorescence detection X‐ray absorption spectroscopies, as well as DFT calculations, give insight into the geometric and electronic structures of the complexes. The XAS signatures of 1–3 are textbook examples for CuI, CuII, and CuIII species. Facile 2‐electron interconversion combined with the exposure of two basic pyridine N sites in the reduced CuI form suggest that [LCu]+/2+/3+ may operate in catalysis via coupled 2 e−/2 H+ transfer.
A flexible macrocyclic ligand with two tridentate {CNC} compartments can host two Cu ions in reversibly interconvertible states, Cu I Cu I (1) and mixed-valent Cu 1.5 Cu 1.5 (2). They were characterized by XRD and multiple spectroscopic methods, including EPR, UV/Vis absorption and MCD, in combination with TD-DFT and CASSCF calculations. 2 features a short Cu•••Cu distance ( � 2.5 Å; compared to � 4.0 Å in 1) and a very high delocalization energy of 13 000 cm À 1 , comparable to the mixed-valent state of the biological Cu A site. Electron self-exchange between 1 and 2 is rapid despite large structural reorganization, and is proposed to proceed via a sequential mechanism involving an active conformer of 1, viz. 1'; the latter has been characterized by XRD. Such electron transfer (ET) process is reminiscent of the conformationally gated ET proposed for biological systems. This redox couple is a unique pair of flexible dicopper complexes, achieving fast electron self-exchange closely related to the function of the Cu A site.
A neutral hybrid macrocycle with two trans‐positioned N‐heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) and two pyridine donors hosts copper in three oxidation states (+I–+III) in a series of structurally characterized complexes (1–3). Redox interconversion of [LCu]+/2+/3+ is electrochemically (quasi)reversible and occurs at moderate potentials (E1/2=−0.45 V and +0.82 V (vs. Fc/Fc+)). A linear CNHC‐Cu‐CNHC arrangement and hemilability of the two pyridine donors allows the ligand to adapt to the different stereoelectronic and coordination requirements of CuI versus CuII/CuIII. Analytical methods such as NMR, UV/Vis, IR, electron paramagnetic resonance, and Cu Kβ high‐energy‐resolution fluorescence detection X‐ray absorption spectroscopies, as well as DFT calculations, give insight into the geometric and electronic structures of the complexes. The XAS signatures of 1–3 are textbook examples for CuI, CuII, and CuIII species. Facile 2‐electron interconversion combined with the exposure of two basic pyridine N sites in the reduced CuI form suggest that [LCu]+/2+/3+ may operate in catalysis via coupled 2 e−/2 H+ transfer.
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