Anion-dependence of the polymeric structures of manganese(II) complexes of N,N′-butylenebis(imidazole)

The preparations and X-band EPR spectra are reported of a series of manganese(II) complexes with N,N'-butylenebis(imidazole) (= BBI) of the types Mn(BBI)(2)X(2) (X = Cl, Br, NO(3), NCS) and [Mn(BBI)(3)]X(2) (X = ClO(4), I). An X-ray crystallographic study on Mn(BBI)(3)Cl(2) (1) shows that each Mn atom is coordinated to four imidazole nitrogen atoms and two chloride ions in a trans-octahedral arrangement and that the BBI ligands link the Mn centres into sheets of contiguous 44-membered rings. X-Ray studies on [Mn(BBI)(3)](ClO(4))(2), and on analogous compounds containing combinations of ClO(4)(-)/PF(6)(-) or ClO(4)(-)/AsF(6)(-) as counter anions, reveal the formation of a family of interpenetrating network structures with anion-dependent cavity sizes. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.