Synthesis and crystal structure of dichlorido(1,10-phenanthroline-κ2N,N′)gold(III) hexafluoridophosphate

Abstract

A gold(III) salt of composition [AuCl2(C12H8N2)]PF6 was prepared and characterized by elemental and mass spectrometric analysis (ESI(+)–QTOF–MS), 1H nuclear magnetic resonance measurements and by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The square-planar coordination sphere of AuIII comprises the bidentate 1,10-phenanthroline ligand and two chloride ions, with the AuIII ion only slightly shifted from the least-squares plane of the ligating atoms (r.m.s. = 0.018 Å). In contrast to two other previously reported AuIII-phenantroline structures that are stabilized by interactions involving the chlorido ligands, the packing of the title compound does not present these features. Instead, the hexafluoridophosphate counter-ion gives rise to anion...π interactions that are a crucial factor for the crystal packing.

Keywords

• gold(III)
• 1,10-phenanthroline ligand
• square-planar coordination
• anion-π interactions
• crystal structure