Synthesis and coordinating properties of a ferrocenophane containing a pyridine unit

Abstract

The cryptand 3, containing both a ferrocene unit and a 2,6-disubstituted pyridine unit, forms complexes with di- and tri-valent cations; the X-ray crystal structure of a 2 : 1 (host : guest) complex with Ca²⁺ shows that the metal cations are coordinated by a cis-configuration of the carbonyl groups on the short (pyridyl) side of the macrocyclic ring, which confirms the interpretation of the ¹H and ¹³C NMR data of the complexes in solution.