Syntheses of Alkaline Earth and Lanthanide Cryptates with Pyridine-Based Group

New alkaline earth metal cryptates [ML] (NO3)2 · 2H2O (M = Ca2+, Sr2+, Ba2+; L = 1, 4, 12, 15, 18, 26, 31, 39, 42, 43, 44-undecaazapentacyclo-[13.13.13.16, 10.120, 24.133, 37]-tetratetraconta-4, 6, 8, 10(44), 11, 18, 20, 22, 24(43), 25, 31, 33, 35, 37(42), 38-pentadecaene) were synthesized by [2 + 3] template condensation of tris(2-aminoethyl) amine with 2, 6-diformylpyridine, and then by transmetallation reactions of the calcium cryptate [CaL] (NO3)2 · 2H2O with corresponding lanthanide ions; three lanthanide cryptates [LnL] (NO)3 · 3H2O (Ln = Eu, Gd, Tb) were synthesized and characterized by physical methods. The crystal structure of the terbium cryptate [TbL] (NO)3 · 3H2O was studied by X-ray analysis. The central atom was coordinated by three pyridyl and six imino nitrogen atoms and exhibited a distorted tricapped trigonal prismatic coordination geometry.