Synthesis, Crystal Structure and Photoluminescence Property of Zinc(II), Cadmium(II), and Lead(II) Complexes with Bidentate Ligand: 1-(1-Imidazolyl)-4-(imidazol-1-ylmethyl)benzene (IIMB)

Assembly of bidentate ligand 1-(1-imidazolyl)-4-(imidazol-1-ylmethyl)benzene (IIMB) with varied metal salts of ZnII, CdII and PbII provide three new complexes, [Zn(IIMB)2](ClO4)2·2H2O (1), [Cd(IIMB)2(SCN)2] (2) and [Pb(IIMB)2(SCN)](SCN) (3). Single crystal X-ray diffraction studies revealed that complexes 1 and 2 display a similar one-dimensional double stranded chain structure, while complex 3 is a slight distorted rhombohedral grid network with (4,4) topology. The results indicate that the coordination geometry of the metal ion and the counter anion have great impact on the structure of the complexes. In addition, the photoluminescence properties of ligand IIMB and complexes 1–3 were studied in the solid state at room temperature.