A mercury iodide adduct with 1,1-bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene - Synthesis, crystal structure, and nonlinear refractive properties

A new mercury iodide complex of dppf, [HgI₂(dppf)] (adduct 1, dppf = 1,1-bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene) was prepared and characterized. Single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis established that the compound crystallizes in the monoclinic system, space group C2c, with a = 34.992(3), b = 10.236(5), c = 18.765(4) Å, β = 99.410(2)°, Z = 8, V = 6631.2(9) ų. The coordination about the mercury atom is tetrahedral with two equivalent Hg-I and Hg-P bonds. Dppf functions as a chelating ligand. The nonlinear optical (NLO) properties were studied with an 8ns-pulsed laser at 532 nm. Its optical responses to the incident light exhibit weak optical absorptive and strong refractive effects, with n₂ = 6.86 × 10^-18 m² · W^-1 in a 2.48 × 10^-4 mol · dm^-3 DMF solution.