From a Well-Defined Organozinc Precursor to Diverse Luminescent Coordination Polymers Based on Zn(II)-Quinolinate Building Units Interconnected by Mixed Ligand Systems

Introduction of photoactive building blocks into mixed-ligand coordination polymers appears to be a promising way to produce new advanced luminescent materials. However, rational design and self-assembly of the multi-component supramolecular systems is challenging from both a conceptual and synthetic perspective. Here, we report exploratory studies that investigate the potential of [Zn(q)2]2[tBuZn(OH)]2 complex (q = deprotonated 8-hydroxyquinoline) as an organozinc precursor as well as a mixed-ligand synthetic strategy for the preparation of new luminescent coordination polymers (CPs). As a result we present three new 2D mixed-ligand Zn(II)-quinolinate coordination polymers which are based on various zinc quinolinate secondary building units interconnected by two different organic linker types, i.e., deprotonated 4,4′-oxybisbenzoic acid (H2obc) as a flexible dicarboxylate linker and/or selected bipyridines (bipy). Remarkably, using the title organozinc precursors in a combination with H2obc and 4,4′-bipyridine, a novel molecular zinc quinolinate building unit, [Zn4(q)6(bipy)2(obc)2], was obtained which self-assembled into a chain-type hydrogen-bonded network. The application of the organometallic precursor allowed for its direct reaction with the selected ligands at ambient temperature, avoiding the use of both solvothermal conditions and additional base reagents. In turn, the reaction involving Zn(NO3)2, as a classical inorganic precursor, in a combination with H2obc and bipy led to a novel 1D coordination polymer [Zn2(q)2(NO3)2(bipy)]. While the presence of H2obc was essential for the formation of this coordination polymer, this ditopic linker was not incorporated into the isolated product, which indicates its templating behavior. The reported compounds were characterized by single-crystal and powder X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis as well as UV-Vis and photoluminescence spectroscopy.