Chemical structure modulation in conductive MOFs by adjusting the oxidation state of the ligand and introducing alkali metal ions.

The metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted more and more attention and some MOFs have shown advanced electrical conductivity. Based on previous work about MnTHBQ (THBQ = tetrahydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone), we present two strategies, variation of the ligands' oxidation states and introducing alkali ions (Rb + or Cs + ), to modulate the structures of MOFs and obtained three new MOFs: MnHHB (HHB = hexahydroxybenzene), MnRbTHBQ and MnCsTHBQ. Different from the cubic lattices in the group of Pm 3̄ of MnTHBQ, they exhibit hexagonal unit cells in the group of P 6/ mmm . This work highlights the importance of the oxidation state of the ligand in constructing the out-of-plane charge transport pathway and indicates that employing a redox-active ligand or adding alkali metal ions could be an optional strategy for manipulating the characteristics of MOFs.