A mononuclear Dy(iii) complex assembled just from five water molecules and two phosphonic diamide ligands combines the advantages of high anisotropy barrier, high blocking temperature and significant coercivity, apart from its remarkable air- and moisture-stability.

The synthesis and magnetic characterisation of a series of bis-μ-alkoxide bridged Mn(III) dinuclear complexes of general formula [Mn(III)(2)(μ-OR)(2)(biphen)(2)(ROH)(x)(L)(y)] (where R = Me, Et; H(2) biphen = 2,2'-biphenol and L = terminally bonded N-donor ligand) is described, doubling the literature basis set for this type of complex. Building on these findings we have categorised all known μ-OR bridged Mn(III) dinuclear complexes into one of three classifications with respect to their molecular structures. We have then employed DFT and MO calculations to assess all potential magneto-structural correlations for this class of compound in order to identify the structural requirements for constructing ferromagnetic family members. Our analysis indicates that the most influential parameter which governs the exchange interaction in this class of compounds is the relative orientation of the JT axes of the Mn(III)  atoms. A perpendicular orientation of the JT axes leads to a large ferromagnetic contribution to the exchange. These results also suggest that a large ferromagnetic interaction and a large anisotropy are unlikely to co-exist in such structural types.

Density functional studies have been performed on ten different {Gd(III)-radical} complexes exhibiting both ferro and antiferromagnetic exchange interaction with an aim to assess a suitable exchange-correlation functional within DFT formalism. This study has also been extended to probe the mechanism of magnetic coupling and to develop suitable magneto-structural correlations for this pair. Our method assessments reveal the following order of increasing accuracy for the evaluation of J values compared to experimental coupling constants: B(40HF)LYP < BHandHLYP < TPSSH < PW91 < PBE < BP86 < OLYP < BLYP < PBE0 < X3LYP < B3LYP < B2PLYP. Grimme's double-hybrid functional is found to be superior compared to other functionals tested and this is followed very closely by the conventional hybrid B3LYP functional. At the basis set front, our calculations reveal that the incorporation of relativistic effect is important in these calculations and the relativistically corrected effective core potential (ECP) basis set is found to yield better Js compared to other methods. The supposedly empty 5d/6s/6p orbitals of Gd(III) are found to play an important role in the mechanism of magnetic coupling and different contributions to the exchange terms are probed using Molecular Orbital (MO) and Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) analysis. Magneto-structural correlations for Gd-O distances, Gd-O-N angles and Gd-O-N-C dihedral angles are developed where the bond angles as well as dihedral angle parameters are found to dictate the sign and strength of the magnetic coupling in this series.

The origin of very strong antiferromagnetic exchange in N(2)(3-) bridged complex, [{[(Me(3)Si)(2)N](2)Gd(THF)}(2)(μ-η(2):η(2)-N(2))](-) (1) has been probed using density functional theory (DFT) combined with molecular orbital (MO) and natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis. The analysis helps us to propose a generic mechanism of coupling for a {2p-4f} class of compounds.

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The axial ligation by the -P[double bond, length as m-dash]O group of a phosphonic diamide in an air-stable Nd(iii) complex ensures a pseudo-D5h symmetry leading to the stabilization of the mJ = |±9/2〉 state; this in turn is responsible for the observed SIM behaviour at zero field and the slow relaxation of magnetization up to 8.0 K.

We report the first study of a gas‐phase reaction catalyzed by highly dispersed sites at the metal nodes of a crystalline metal–organic framework (MOF). Specifically, CuRhBTC (BTC3−=benzenetricarboxylate) exhibited hydrogenation activity, while other isostructural monometallic and bimetallic MOFs did not. Our multi‐technique characterization identifies the oxidation state of Rh in CuRhBTC as +2, which is a Rh oxidation state that has not previously been observed for crystalline MOF metal nodes. These Rh2+ sites are active for the catalytic hydrogenation of propylene to propane at room temperature, and the MOF structure stabilizes the Rh2+ oxidation state under reaction conditions. Density functional theory calculations suggest a mechanism in which hydrogen dissociation and propylene adsorption occur at the Rh2+ sites. The ability to tailor the geometry and ensemble size of the metal nodes in MOFs allows for unprecedented control of the active sites and could lead to significant advances in rational catalyst design.

Density functional theory (DFT) studies on two polynuclear clusters, [Cu(II)5Gd(III)4O2(OMe)4(teaH)4(O2CC(CH3)3)2(NO3)4] (1) and [Cu5Gd2(OH)4(Br)2-(H2L)2(H3L)2(NO3)2(OH2)4] (2), have been carried out to probe the origin of the large magnetocaloric effect (MCE). The magnetic exchange interactions for 1 and 2 via multiple pathways are estimated using DFT calculations. While the calculated exchange parameters deviate from previous experimental estimates obtained by fitting the magnetic data, the DFT parameter set is found to offer a striking match to the magnetic data for both complexes, highlighting the problem of overparameterization. Magnetostructural correlations for {Cu-Gd} pairs have been developed where both the Cu-O-Gd angles and Cu-O-Gd-O dihedral angles are found to significantly influence the magnitude and sign of the exchange constants. The magnitude of the MCE has been examined as a function of the exchange interactions, and clues on how the effect can be enhanced are discussed.