Trinuclear Cyanido-Bridged [Cr2 Fe] Complexes: To Be or not to Be a Single-Molecule Magnet, a Matter of Straightness.

Trinuclear systems of formula [{Cr(LN3O2Ph )(CN)2 }2 M(H2 LN3O2R )] (M=MnII and FeII , LN3O2R stands for pentadentate ligands) were prepared in order to assess the influence of the bending of the apical M-N≡C linkages on the magnetic anisotropy of the FeII derivatives and in turn on their Single-Molecule Magnet (SMM) behaviors. The cyanido-bridged [Cr2 M] derivatives were obtained by assembling trans-dicyanido CrIII complex [Cr(LN3O2Ph )(CN)2 ]- and divalent pentagonal bipyramid complexes [MII (H2 LN3O2R )]2+ with various R substituents (R=NH2 , cyclohexyl, S,S-mandelic) imparting different steric demand to the central moiety of the complexes. A comparative examination of the structural and magnetic properties showed an obvious effect of the deviation from straightness of the M-N≡C alignment on the slow relaxation of the magnetization exhibited by the [Cr2 Fe] complexes. Theoretical calculations have highlighted important effects of the bending of the apical C-N-Fe linkages on both the magnetic anisotropy of the FeII center and the exchange interactions with the CrIII units.