A new type of single-helix coordination polymer with mixed ligands [M2(phen)2(e,a-cis-1,4-chdc)2(H2O)2]n (M=Co and Ni; phen=1,10-phenanthroline; chdc=cyclohexanedicarboxylate).

A new family of single-stranded helices coordination polymers with mixed ligands, [M2(phen)2(e,a-cis-1,4-chdc)2(H2O)2]n (1, M=Co; 2, M=Ni; chdc=cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid; phen=1,10-phenanthroline), were prepared under hydrothermal conditions and characterized by elemental analyses, IR spectra, TG analysis, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. X-ray crystal structural analyses reveal that 1 and 2 are isomorphic and belong to the monoclinic system. C40H36Co2N4O10, P2(1)/c, a=10.0566(5) A, b=8.8843(5) A, c=20.2912(14) A, beta=100.052(3) degrees, Z=2 for 1; and C40H36Ni2N4O10, P2(1)/c, a=9.8921(6) A, b=9.0151(4) A, c=20.1628(17) A, beta=100.31(2) degrees, Z=2 for 2. In the structures of 1 and 2, the 1,4-chdc ligand possesses only one kind of e,a-cis-conformation although there are both cis- and trans-conformations in the raw material. Two oxygen atoms of one carboxyl in 1,4-chdc ligand and another oxygen atom of contraposition carboxyl link adjacent Co or Ni atoms into an infinite 1-D zigzag chain. The most attractive structural feature of 1 and 2 is that they both exhibit an infinite chiral chainlike structure with 2(1) helices along the b axis. In addition, the right-handed and the left-handed chains are alternate. Meanwhile, the adjacent chains of 1 and 2 are linked via hydrogen bonds into 2-D network structures, which further form 3-D frameworks via pi-pi interactions of 1,10-phen.