Assembly and Selective Photocatalysis of Two Multifunctional Copper(II) Complexes Derived From a Bis-Pyridyl-Bis-Amide and Two Dicarboxylates

Two multifunctional metal-organic coordination polymers, namely [Cu(4-bpah)(2,6-PDA)] (1) and [Cu(4-bpah)(3-NIP)]·H₂O (2), where 4-bpah = N, N′-bis(4-pyridinecarboxamide)-1,2-cyclohexane, 2,6-H₂PDA = pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid, 3-H₂NIP = 3-nitrophalic acid, have been hydrothermally synthesized and structurally characterized by IR, TG, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. Complex 1 is a 1D infinite helix chain structure. Complex 2 possesses a 2D polymeric layer containing two kinds of meso-helical chains: [Cu-4-bpah]_n and [Cu-3-NIP]_n. The adjacent 1D chains for 1 or the adjacent 2D layers for 2 are further linked by hydrogen bonding interactions to form 2D or 3D supramolecular networks, respectively. The fluorescent, electrochemical and photocatalytic properties of complexes 1–2 have also been investigated.