Ring-Opening Polymerisation of Low-Strain Nickelocenophanes: Synthesis and Magnetic Properties of Polynickelocenes with Carbon and Silicon Main Chain Spacers

Polymetallocenes based on ferrocene, and to a lesser extent cobaltocene, have been well-studied, whereas analogous systems based on nickelocene are virtually unexplored. It has been previously shown that poly(nickelocenylpropylene) [Ni(η⁵ -C₅ H₄ )₂ (CH₂ )₃ ]_n is formed as a mixture of cyclic (6_x ) and linear (7) components by the reversible ring-opening polymerisation (ROP) of tricarba[3]nickelocenophane [Ni(η⁵ -C₅ H₄ )₂ (CH₂ )₃ ] (5). Herein the generality of this approach to main-chain polynickelocenes is demonstrated and the ROP of tetracarba[4]nickelocenophane [Ni(η⁵ -C₅ H₄ )₂ (CH₂ )₄ ] (8), and disila[2]nickelocenophane [Ni(η⁵ -C₅ H₄ )₂ (SiMe₂ )₂ ] (12) is described, to yield predominantly insoluble homopolymers poly(nickelocenylbutylene) [Ni(η⁵ -C₅ H₄ )₂ (CH₂ )₄ ]_n (13) and poly(tetramethyldisilylnickelocene) [Ni(η⁵ -C₅ H₄ )₂ (SiMe₂ )₂ ]_n (14), respectively. The ROP of 8 and 12 was also found to be reversible at elevated temperature. To access soluble high molar mass materials, copolymerisations of 5, 8, and 12 were performed. Superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometry measurements of 13 and 14 indicated that these homopolymers behave as simple paramagnets at temperatures greater than 50 K, with significant antiferromagnetic coupling that is notably larger in carbon-bridged 6_x /7 and 13 compared to the disilyl-bridged 14. However, the behaviour of these polynickelocenes deviates substantially from the Curie-Weiss law at low temperatures due to considerable zero-field splitting.

Phenanthroline-A Versatile Ligand for Advanced Functional Polymeric Materials

The controlled incorporation of phenanthroline moieties into polymers is introduced, demonstrating their application as metal-ion complexing ligands for the construction of advanced macromolecular structures. Specifically, two phenanthroline-containing monomers based on acrylate and styrene functionalities, were synthesized. Each monomer was readily copolymerized with either N,N-dimethylacrylamide or styrene via nitroxide-mediated polymerization, resulting in narrowly distributed polar or non-polar copolymers. To demonstrate the versatility of the established polymer systems, the polar polymer was employed for transition metal induced single-chain nanoparticle formation, verified by diffusion-ordered NMR and UV/Vis spectroscopy. Furthermore, the non-polar polymer allows facile incorporation of lanthanide ions, creating luminescent metallo-polymers, in-depth characterized by advanced photophysical experiments and 2D NMR measurements.

Multichromophore arrays of dibenzotetraaza[14]annulene: a promising platform for bioorganic chemistry

The first series of discrete multichromophore arrays of dibenzotetraaza[14]annulene (DBTAA), containing flexible bridges, have been synthesized in 40-46% isolated yields. The key asymmetrical intermediates, carrying two distinctly addressable functionalities (ROH vs. ROCH2-C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C-H and R(CH2)nBr vs. ROCH2-C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C-H) at the macrocycle periphery, were synthesized in moderate to high (30-78%) isolated yields. Facile synthetic protocols developed for the synthesis of discrete DBTAA arrays offer several advantages such as operational simplicity and easy post-synthetic workup that overcome the need for laborious chromatographic purification. All new compounds were characterized by microanalysis, mass spectrometry, UV-Vis, FTIR-ATR, and 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. Structural features were briefly discussed with emphasis on several potential applications.

(Co)polymers containing boron difluoride 3-cyanoformazanate complexes: emission enhancement via random copolymerization

Synthesis and photophysical characterization of (co)polymers containing an asymmetrically substituted BF₂complex of a 3-cyanoformazanate ligand are reported.