A toolbox of building blocks, linkers and crystallisation methods used to generate single-chain magnets

•Summary table of all complexes reported to be single-chain magnets (SCMs) pre-2014.•Strategies for generating SCMs summarised.•Types of building blocks (usually Ising centres) used in SCMs identified and examples presented.•Types of linkers used in SCMs identified and examples presented.•Summary and advice on crystallisation methods for combining building blocks and linkers.

Single-molecule magnets (SMMs) and single-chain magnets (SCMs) are potential candidates for more dense data storage and quantum computing as well as providing interesting systems with which to study the physics behind molecular magnetism. Despite only being discovered in 2001, the field of SCM is experiencing rapid growth and already shows promise with regard to improving on the blocking temperatures (TB) achievable by SMMs. Indeed, to date, the record TB values for SCMs vs SMMs are running neck and neck, at 14 K vs 13.9 K, respectively. This review details the range of building blocks and linkers that, prior to 1 January 2014, have been used to prepare complexes that were reported to be SCMs. Then, as X-ray structure determinations are of crucial importance, a summary of the crystallisation methods that can be used to assemble the building blocks (usually Ising centres) and linkers into 1D chains, in the form of single crystals, is provided. A table summarising the building blocks/linkers and crystallisation methods, CSD codes, and key magnetic parameters, for the SCMs reported pre-2014, is provided as a useful resource for researchers in this field. The reader is referred to previous excellent reviews for a description of the theory and terms used in the field of SCM: this review instead takes a synthetic chemists perspective, presenting the components and crystallisation methods employed to generate complexes reported to be SCMs, pre-2014.

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