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Related Concept Videos

Colors and Magnetism03:02

Colors and Magnetism

Color in Coordination Complexes
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human eye.
Valence Bond Theory02:42

Valence Bond Theory

Coordination compounds and complexes exhibit different colors, geometries, and magnetic behavior, depending on the metal atom/ion and ligands from which they are composed. In an attempt to explain the bonding and structure of coordination complexes, Linus Pauling proposed the valence bond theory, or VBT, using the concepts of hybridization and the overlapping of the atomic orbitals. According to VBT, the central metal atom or ion (Lewis acid) hybridizes to provide empty orbitals of suitable...
Complexation Equilibria: Factors Influencing Stability of Complexes01:09

Complexation Equilibria: Factors Influencing Stability of Complexes

In complexation reactions, metal cations are the electron pair acceptors, and the ligands are the electron pair donors. The stability of the metal complexes depends primarily on the complexing ability of the central metal ion and the nature of the ligands. Generally, the complexing ability of the metal ion depends on the size and charge of the ion. As the metal ion size increases, the stability of the metal complexes decreases, provided that the valency of the metal ion and the ligands remain...
Crystal Field Theory - Octahedral Complexes02:58

Crystal Field Theory - Octahedral Complexes

Crystal Field Theory
To explain the observed behavior of transition metal complexes (such as colors), a model involving electrostatic interactions between the electrons from the ligands and the electrons in the unhybridized d orbitals of the central metal atom has been developed. This electrostatic model is crystal field theory (CFT). It helps to understand, interpret, and predict the colors, magnetic behavior, and some structures of coordination compounds of transition metals.
CFT focuses on...
Crystal Field Theory - Tetrahedral and Square Planar Complexes02:46

Crystal Field Theory - Tetrahedral and Square Planar Complexes

Tetrahedral Complexes
Crystal field theory (CFT) is applicable to molecules in geometries other than octahedral. In octahedral complexes, the lobes of the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals point directly at the ligands. For tetrahedral complexes, the d orbitals remain in place, but with only four ligands located between the axes. None of the orbitals points directly at the tetrahedral ligands. However, the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals (along the Cartesian axes) overlap with the ligands less than the dxy,...
Structural Isomerism02:34

Structural Isomerism

Isomerism in Complexes
Isomers are different chemical species that have the same chemical formula. Structural isomerism of coordination compounds can be divided into two subcategories, the linkage isomers and coordination-sphere isomers.
Linkage isomers occur when the coordination compound contains a ligand that can bind to the transition metal center through two different atoms. For example, the CN− ligand can bind through the carbon atom or through the nitrogen atom. Similarly, SCN− can be...

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Structure, Stability, and Spin Resonance in Dicopper(II) Complexes.

Ökten Üngör1, Nicholas Yiching Chiang1, Alexander Yu Sokolov1

  • 1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States.

Inorganic Chemistry
|July 6, 2026
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This study explores dinuclear copper(II) complexes for quantum information science. Researchers found that varying ligands and counterions robustly tune magnetic properties, offering insights for designing molecular spin systems.

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Area of Science:

  • Coordination Chemistry
  • Quantum Information Science
  • Magnetochemistry

Background:

  • Designing molecular systems for quantum sensing and information science requires accessing entangled spin states.
  • Spin-forbidden transitions are crucial for these applications but remain a significant challenge in molecular design.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate a family of dinuclear copper(II) complexes, [L₂Cu₂(μ-CA)]X₂, to understand how ligand and counterion variations influence their spin states and magnetic properties.
  • To explore the potential of these complexes as platforms for quantum sensing and information science.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic variation of cyclic (Me₃tacn, tmchd) and polypyridyl ligands (4'-Br/Cl-terpy, tpa), along with counteranions (ClO₄⁻, CF₃SO₃⁻, Cl⁻).
  • Structural analysis using X-ray diffraction.
  • Magnetic susceptibility measurements to determine exchange coupling and singlet-to-triplet energy gaps.
  • Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, including low-temperature and frozen-solution EPR, to study spin states and transitions.
  • Comparison with mononuclear analogues.
  • Multireference calculations to model g-anisotropy.

Main Results:

  • Distorted octahedral to trigonal-bipyramidal Cu(II) environments were observed.
  • Moderate antiferromagnetic coupling was established, with singlet-to-triplet energy gaps ranging from 2J = -1.26 to -30.68(3) cm⁻¹.
  • Well-resolved half-field (ΔMs = ±2) transitions in the S = 1 manifold were observed in EPR spectra.
  • The dinuclear core structure ([L₂Cu₂(μ-CA)]²⁺) was confirmed to persist in frozen solutions.
  • A robust magnetic core was identified, showing resilience to changes in counterions and ligand shells.
  • Subtle influences of chemical modifications on the intensity of forbidden ΔMs = ±2 transitions were noted.
  • A remarkable absence of the singlet/triplet transition was observed.

Conclusions:

  • The study demonstrates that systematic chemical modifications of dinuclear copper(II) complexes can tune their magnetic properties, including exchange coupling and EPR spectral features.
  • The identified robust magnetic core provides a stable platform for further development in molecular quantum technologies.
  • The absence of the singlet/triplet transition offers valuable insights for future molecular design strategies aimed at controlling spin dynamics and accessing specific entangled states.