A luminescent silver-saccharinato complex with S,S-diphenylsulfimide: Synthesis, spectroscopic, thermal, structural and DFT computational studies

A new silver(I)-saccharinato (sac) complex with S,S-diphenylsulfimide, [Ag(sac)(Ph2SNH)], has been prepared and characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, thermal analysis and single crystal X-ray diffraction. X-ray diffraction analyses show that the title complex has a monomeric structure containing linearly coordinated silver(I) ion with an N–Ag–N angle of 173.80(10)°. The individual molecules are linked by strong N–H⋯O hydrogen bonds and aromatic stacking π⋯π interactions and packing of the molecules is further reinforced by C–H⋯π interactions. Ph2SNH and [Ag(sac)(Ph2SNH)] in solution at room temperature display intense blue luminescence with emission maxima at 380 and 408 nm, respectively. The photoluminescence properties have been investigated by DFT calculations, showing that the luminescence properties of the Ph2SNH are due to intraligand transitions, while for the silver(I) complex, the luminescence was originated from several transitions including intraligand transitions and metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT).