Bis([phthalocyaninato(2-)]arsenic(III)) tetradecaiodotetra-arsenic(III)

Crystals of the novel title arsenic(III) phthalocyanine complex, [As(C(32)H(16)N(8))](2)[As(4)I(14)] or [(AsPc)(+)](2).[As(4)I(14)](2-), where Pc is phthalocyaninate(2-), have been obtained by the reaction of pure powdered As with phthalonitrile under a stream of iodine vapour at 493 K. The crystals are built up of separate but interacting [AsPc](+) cations and [As(4)I(12)](2-) anions. The As atom of the [AsPc](+) unit is bonded to the four isoindole N atoms of the Pc macrocycle and lies 0.743 (2) A out of the plane defined by these four N atoms. The anionic part of the complex consists of AsI(3) and [AsI(4)](-) units joined together into an [As(4)I(14)](2-) anion. The arrangement of the oppositely charged moieties, [AsPc](+) and [As(4)I(14)](2-), in the crystal is determined mainly by ionic attraction and by donor-acceptor interactions between the [AsPc](+) and [As(4)I(14)](2-) ions.