Cryptates, lanthanide complexes

Mono- and bimetallic lanthanide complexes of the tren-based macrobicyclic Schiff base ligand [L58]3- have been synthesized and structurally characterized (Fig. 15), and their photophysical properties studied (90,91). The bimetallic cryptates only form with the lanthanides from gadolinium to lutetium due to the lanthanide contraction. The triplet energy of the ligand (ca. 16,500 cm-1) is too low to populate the terbium excited state. The aqueous lifetime of the emission from the europium complex is less than 0.5 ms, due in part to the coordination of a solvent molecule in solution. A recent development is the study of d-f heterobimetallic complexes of this ligand (92) the Zn-Ln complexes show improved photophysical properties over the homobinuclear and mononuclear complexes, although only data in acetonitrile have been reported to date. 

Numerous macrocyclic and macropolycyclic ligands featuring subheterocyclic rings such as pyridine, furan or thiophene have been investigated [2.70] among which one may, for instance, cite the cyclic hexapyridine torands (see 19) [2.39] and the cryptands containing pyridine, 2,2 -bipyridine (bipy), 9,10-phenanthroline (phen) etc. units [2.56,2.57,2.71-2.73]. The [Na+ c tris-bipy] cryptate 20 [2.71] and especially lanthanide complexes of the same class have been extensively studied [2.74, 2.75] (see also Sect. 8.2). 

The formation of luminescent lanthanide complexes relies on a number of factors. The choice of coordinating ligand and the method by which the antenna chromophore is attached to it, as well as the physical properties of the antenna, are important. In order to fully coordinate a lanthanide ion, either a high-level polydentate ligand such as a cryptate 1 or a number of smaller ligands (such as 1,3-diketones, 2) working in cooperation are required. Both 1 and 2 are two of the simplest coordination complexes possible for lanthanide ions. In both cases there are no antennae present. However, the number of bound solvent molecules is decreased considerably from nine (for lanthanide ions in solution) to one to two for the cryptate and three for the 1,3-diketone complexes. 

Following the initial reports of the anteima effect in lanthanide cryptates, many other lanthanide complexes containing additional chromophoric ligands have been investigated and found to be useful as luminescent labels for biological substrates, and in general as sensors based on luminescent properties [21]. 

Cryptands have been somewhat deceptive for both coordination chemistry (Sastri et al., 2003) and photophysical properties of the resulting lanthanide complexes despite some commercial uses (Mathis, 1998), in particular of Lehn s Eu cryptate with cryptand 23a (fig. 28). The latter has been tested for the sensitization of the NIR luminescence of Nd and Yb. Characteristic emission from these two ions is seen upon excitation of the bipyridyl chro-mophores at 355 nm. Emission from Yb is reported to be much more intense than the one from Nd and the authors propose that the excitation mechanism depicted in fig. 9 is operative in this case since no transient absorption corresponding to the formation of the triplet state could be detected (Faulkner et al., 2001). Analysis of lifetime measurements in both water (r( F5/2) = 0.52 ps) and deuterated water (5.21 ps) gives a hydration number q = 1.5. Since fitting the luminescence decays to a double exponential function did not improve noticeably the resulting fit, the authors concluded that the non-integer value does not reflect an equilibrium between two different hydration states but, rather, that the distance of close approach of two water molecules is longer note that comparable experiments on Eu and Tb ... 

J. REBIZANT, M. R. SPIRLET, P. P. BARTH LEMY, and J. F. DESREUX / SoUd State and Solution Structures of the Lanthanide Complexes with Cryptand (2.2.1) Crystallographic and NMR Studies of a Dimeric Praseodymium (2.2.1) Cryptate Containing Two p-Hydroxo Bridges... 

Abstract. A dimeric lanthanide cryptate was obtained by the addition of an excess of cryptand (2.2.1) to a slightly hydrated solution of the monomeric praseodymium (2.2.1) perchlorate complex in acetonitrile. This new lanthanide compound is centrosymmetric and displays the space group P2 /n. The encryptated metal ions are nine-coordinated, they are bonded to all the heteroatoms of a (2.2.1) ligand and they are linked to each other by two p-hydroxo bridges. The hydroxyl groups are relegating the cryptands to both end of the dimer and the praseodymium ions are less effectively accomodated in the macrocylic internal cavities than in the case of the monomeric Pr(2.2.1) complex. The formation of both the monomeric and the dimeric lanthanide complexes is readily observed by proton NMR. 

Traces of water in our solutions of monomeric praseodymium cryptate are most probably responsible for the formation of the dimeric complex reported here. Partial hydrolysis of this complex takes place because the excess of (2.2.1) cryptand brings about a pH increase. Incomplete hydrolysis of a lanthanide macrocyclic complex has also been noted by Biinzli et al. [14] who prepared a dimeric praseodymium complex with 1,4,7,10,13-pentaoxacyclododecane (15-crown-5) by dehydrating in vacuo a monomeric species. The metal ions in this dimer are bridged by only one hydroxyl group and by three trifluoroacetate anions. The distance between the two praseodymium ions in the (2.2.1) cryptate reported here is 3.927(1) A this value compares very well with the values reported for the two other dinuclear lanthanide complexes mentioned above [13-14]. 

These complexes, unlike the crown ether complexes but similar to the aza-crown and phthalocyanine complexes, are fairly stable in water. Their dissociation kinetics have been studied and not surprisingly they showed marked acid catalysis.504 Association constant values for lanthanide cryptates have been determined.505,506 A study in dimethyl sulfoxide solution by visible spectroscopy using murexide as a lanthanide indicator showed that there was little lanthanide specificity (but surprisingly the K values for Yb are higher than those of the other lanthanides). The values are set out in Table 9.507... 

A number of X-ray crystal determinations have made the principles of lanthanide cryptate structural chemistry fairly clear. In [La(N03)2(2,2,2-cryptate)][La(N03)6] (Figure 8), the La3+ ion is 12-coordinated with two bidentate nitrate ions coordinating in two of the three spaces between the cryptate chains the third space is thus too compressed to be occupied also.508 [Sm(N03)(2,2,2-cryptate)][Sm(N03)5(H20)] shows only one such space occupied511 and the structure of [Eu(C104)2,2,2-cryptate](C104)2MeCN is similar to the samarium cryptate.512,513 Intemuclear distances in these complexes are shown in Table 10. 

Table 10 Lanthanide-Ligand Distances in Cryptate Complexes...

By redesigning the above acyclic podand-type ligand 3 into a cyclic cryptate, the issue of stability can be resolved resulting in kinetically stable complexes (Scheme 4) [102]. The Tb(III) and Eu(III) complexes of cryptate 5 show an increase in lanthanide emission lifetimes of 0.72 ms and 0.41 ms, respectively, upon excitation at 310 nm. Similar results are found with the phenanthroline analogue 6 with Eu(III). A large number of modifications of these cryptates have been reported, all showing enhancements in the lanthanide ion emission [103-106]. 

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