Iron-molybdenum charge-transfer hybrids containing organometallic and inorganic fragments bridged by aryldiazenido ligands in a mu-eta(6):eta(1) coordination mode: syntheses, characterization, X-ray structures, electrochemistry, and theoretical investigation.

Representative members of a new family of covalently bonded charge-transfer molecular hybrids, of general formula [(eta5-C5H5)Fe(mu,eta6:eta1-p-RC6H4NN)Mo(eta2-S2CNEt2)3] +PF6- (R: H, 5+PF6-; Me, 6+PF6-; MeO, 7+PF6-) and [(eta5-C5Me5)Fe(mu,eta6:eta1-C6H5NN)Mo(eta2-S2CNEt2)3]+PF6-, 8+PF6-, have been synthesized by reaction of the corresponding mixed-sandwich organometallic hydrazines [(eta5-C5H5)Fe(eta6-p-RC6H4NHNH2)]+PF6- (R: H, 1+PF6-; Me, 2+PF6-; MeO, 3+PF6-) and [(eta5-C5Me5)Fe(eta6-C6H5NHNH2)]+PF6-, 4+PF6-, with cis-dioxomolybdenum(VI) bis(diethyldithiocarbamato) complex, [MoO2(S2CNEt2)2], in the presence of sodium diethyldithiocarbamato trihydrate, NaSC(=S)NEt2.3H2O, in refluxing methanol. These iron-molybdenum complexes consist of organometallic and inorganic fragments linked each other through a pi-conjugated aryldiazenido bridge coordinated in eta6 and eta1 modes, respectively. These complexes were fully characterized by FT-IR, UV-visible, and 1H NMR spectroscopies and, in the case of complex 7+PF6-, by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Likewise, the electrochemical and solvatochromic properties were studied by cyclic voltammetry and UV-visible spectroscopy, respectively. The electronic spectra of these hybrids show an absorption band in the 462-489 and 447-470 nm regions in CH2Cl2 and DMSO, respectively, indicating the existence of a charge-transfer transition from the inorganic donor to the organometallic acceptor fragments through the aryldiazenido spacer. A rationalization of the properties of 5+PF6--8+PF6- is provided through DFT calculations on a simplified model of 7+PF6-. Besides the heterodinuclear complexes 5+PF6--8+PF6-, the mononuclear molybdenum diazenido derivatives, [(eta1-p-RC6H4NN)Mo(eta2-S2CNEt2)3] (R: H, 9; Me, 10; MeO, 11), resulting from the decoordination of the [(eta5-C5H5)Fe]+ moiety of complexes 5+PF6--7+PF6-, were also isolated. For comparative studies, the crystalline and molecular structure of complex 10.Et2O was also determined by X-ray diffraction analysis and its electronic structure computed.