Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol.138, No.5, 1635-1646, 2016
Tuning of Charge Transfer Assisted Phase Transition and Slow Magnetic Relaxation Functionalities in {Fe9-xCox[W(CN)(8)](6)} (x=0-9) Molecular Solid Solution
Precisely controlled stoichiometric mixtures of Co2+ and Fe2+ metal ions were combined with the [W-v(CN)(8)](3-) metalloligand in a methanolic solution to produce a series of trimetallic cyanido-bridged {Fe9-xCox [W(CN)(8)](6)(MeOH)(24)}. 12MeOH (x = 0, 1, ..., 8, 9; compounds 0, 1, ..., 8, 9) clusters. All the compounds, 0-9, are isostructural, and consist of pentadecanuclear clusters of a six-capped body-centered cube topology, capped by methanol molecules which are coordinated to 3d metal centers. Thus, they can be considered as a unique type of a cluster-based molecular solid solution in which different Co/Fe metal ratios can be introduced while preserving the coordination skeleton and the overall molecular architecture. Depending on the Co/Fe ratio, 0-9 exhibit an unprecedented tuning of magnetic functionalities which relate to charge transfer assisted phase transition effects and slow magnetic relaxation effects. The iron rich 0-5 phases exhibit thermally induced reversible structural phase transitions in the 180-220 K range with the critical temperatures being linearly dependent on the value of x. The phase transition in 0 is accompanied by Fe-HS(II) W-V <-> Fe-HS(III) W-IV charge transfer (CT) and the additional minor contribution of a Fe-based spin crossover (SCO) effect. The Co-containing 1-5 phases reveal two simultaneous electron transfer processes which explore Fe-HS(II) W-V <-> Fe-HS(III) W-IV CT and the more complex Co-HS(II) W-V <-> Co-LS(III) W-IV charge transfer induced spin transition (CTIST). Detailed structural, spectroscopic, and magnetic studies help explain the specific role of both types of CN--bridged moieties: the Fe-NC-W linkages activate the molecular network toward a phase transition, while the subsequent Co-W CTIST enhances structural changes and enlarges thermal hysteresis of the magnetic susceptibility. On the second side of the 0-9 series, the vanishing phase transition in the cobalt rich 6-9 phases results in the high-spin ground state, and in the occurrence of a slow magnetic relaxation process at low temperatures. The energy barrier of the magnetic relaxation gradually increases with the increasing value of x, reaching up to Delta E/k(B) = 22.3(3) K for compound 9.