Circularly polarized luminescence and magneto-optic effects from chiral Dy(III) single molecule magnets.

A new pair of multifunctional Zn(II)-Dy(III) enantiomers based on the chiral Schiff-base ligands [ R , R -ZnLDy(H 2 O)(NO 3 ) 3 ] (1R2R-ZnDy) and [ S , S -ZnLDy(H 2 O)(NO 3 ) 3 ] (1S2S-ZnDy) (H 2 L = phenol, 2,2'-[[(1 R ,2 R /1 S ,2 S )-1,2-diphenyl-1,2-ethanediyl]bis[( E )-nitrilomethylidyne]]bis[6-methoxy]) was synthesized and characterized. Magnetic studies indicate that 1R2R-ZnDy behaves as a single-molecule magnet. Enantiomers 1R2R-ZnDy and 1S2S-ZnDy show chiroptical activity and circularly polarized luminescence in the N , N -dimethylformamide (DMF) solution. The chiral Zn(II)-Dy(III) complexes display magnetic circular dichroism signals at room temperature. Accordingly, these complexes will inspire intriguing research on single-molecule magnets with circular polarization of luminescence activity and magneto-optic effects, which will give new clues to design multifunctional molecular magnetic materials.