Thermochromic Solid-State Emission of Dipyridyl Sulfoxide Cu(I) Complexes

Copper(I) complexes (Cu-DPSO and Cu-Me-DPSO) utilizing sulfoxide-bridged dipyridyl ligands are reported. Cu-DPSO demonstrates photophysical properties typical with [Cu(disphosphine)(diimine)]+ complexes, however with additional steric bulk in the 6- and 6′-positions of the diimine ligand to give complex Cu-Me-DPSO; the photophysics are greatly altered. This species is isolated as an amorphous powder (a-Cu-Me-DPSO) which emits yellow light; upon heating to 180 °C, a crystalline powder is formed (c-Cu-Me-DPSO) which shows a large bathochromic shift (>100 nm) in emission, and shows orange luminescence attributed to a flattening distortion of the complex away from a tetrahedral geometry. On cooling to −196 °C, c-Cu-Me-DPSO displays a reversible thermochromic solid-state emission, from orange at room temperature to yellow at low temperatures. Using solid-state variable temperature excitation and absorption data, this phenomenon is attributed to a change in coordination geometry about the copper atom in the exc...