Pyrazine-bridged copper(I) iodide coordination polymers: Control of chain separation through ligand design

Syntheses are described of two new ligands that contain a central benzene to which are attached via oxygen atoms two pyrazine or quinoxaline rings. These react with copper(I) iodide to form complexes, whose crystal structures reveal coordination polymers consisting of ladders of Cu2I2 rings crosslinked into two-dimensional sheets by the new bridging ligands. The ligands separate the ladders by a distance of ca. 1.6 nm.