Organic-inorganic hybrid rare earth complexes based on polymolybdates with intrinsic photosensitive properties

A series of organic–inorganic hybrid rare earth complexes {[RE2(PO)2(H2O)10][H2Mo36O112(OH2)12(PO)4]}·5PO·2(CH3CN)·nH2O [n = 23–42, RE(III) = Nd(III), 1; Sm(III), 2; Eu(III), 3; Gd(III), 4; Dy(III), 5; Er(III), 6; Tm(III), 7; Yb(III), 8; Lu(III), 9; Y(III), 10; PO = piperidin-2-one] have been synthesized and fully characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, powder X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, IR spectra, thermogravimetric analysis and UV-vis spectra. Structural analysis reveals that compounds 1-10 are isostructural and crystallize in the monoclinic P2(1)/n space group. Each compound contains a centrosymmetric anionic cluster [Mo36O112(OH2)12(PO)4](8-), which could be described as the derivative of [Mo36O112(OH2)16](8-) with four water molecules substituted by organic PO molecules. Each {Mo18} subunit connects with one RE(III) ion via its two terminal O atoms from two independent {MoO6} octahedra. The eight coordinated RE(III) ion with a distorted tetragonal antiprism coordination geometry is also surrounded by another six oxygen atoms, five of them from five water molecules and the final one from one PO molecule. Compounds 1-10 show considerable photosensitive behavior under visible light excitation. In addition, compound 3 exhibits three emission bands at 580, 595 and 617 nm in the solid state, which could be assigned to (5)D0→(7)F0, (5)D0→(7)F1 and (5)D0→(7)F2 transitions of Eu(III) ions, respectively.