Switching on emission in Zn(II) coordination complexes by tempering N amido character.
Amy L KnodelIssiah B LozadaRobert J OrtizJ A Gareth WilliamsDavid E HerbertPublished in: Chemical communications (Cambridge, England) (2024)
A series of four-coordinate zinc(II) complexes is presented in which the amido vs . imino character of a ligated nitrogen donor correlates to the luminescence intensity. DFT analysis points to a distinct mechanism for this trend wherein emission can be switched on by restricting non-radiative decay pathways through the resonance-induced delocalization of amido ligand lone-pairs.