Three-way switching in a cyanide-bridged [CoFe] chain

Abstract

Bistable compounds that exist in two interchangeable phases under identical conditions can act as switches under external stimuli. Among such switchable materials, coordination complexes have energy levels (or phases) that are determined by the electronic states of their constituent metal ions and ligands. They can exhibit multiple bistabilities and hold promise in the search for multifaceted materials that display different properties in different phases, accessible through the application of contrasting external stimuli. Molecular systems that exhibit both thermo- and photoinduced magnetic bistabilities are excellent candidates for such systems. Here we describe a cyanide-bridged [CoFe] one-dimensional chiral coordination polymer that displays both magnetic and electric bistabilities in the same temperature range. Both the electric and magnetic switching probably arise from the same electron-transfer coupled spin-transition phenomenon, which enables the reversible conversion between an insulating diamagnetic phase and either a semiconducting paramagnetic (thermoinduced) or a type of ferromagnetic single-chain magnet (photoinduced) state. Bistable materials, which exist in either one of two phases under identical conditions, are intriguing both from a fundamental perspective and for their practical applications. A cyanide-bridged [CoFe] coordination chain has now been prepared that shows both magnetic and electric bistabilities in the same temperature range, undergoing thermo- and photo-induced conversions between insulating, semiconducting and single-chain magnet-type phases.

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Hoshino, N., Iijima, F., Newton, G. et al. Three-way switching in a cyanide-bridged [CoFe] chain. Nature Chem 4, 921–926 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nchem.1455

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