Five chiral Cd(II) complexes with dual chiral components: Effect of positional isomerism, luminescence and SHG response

•Five chiral Cd(II) complexes with dual chiral components have been synthesized.•CD spectra and SHG efficiency of the bulk samples have been measured.•The complexes display luminescent properties.

Five chiral Cd(II) complexes with dual chiral components have been synthesized by using a series of (1R,2R)–N1,N2-bis(pyridinylmethyl)cyclohexane-1,2-diamine ligands with different N-positions of pyridyl rings and Cd(NO3)2. The circular dichroism (CD) spectra and second-harmonic generation (SHG) efficiency measurements confirmed that they are of structural chirality in the bulk samples. The luminescent properties indicated that they may have potential applications as optical materials. The formation of discrete mononuclear and binuclear complexes, and one-dimensional chains may be attributed to positional isomerism of the ligands.

Graphical abstractFive chiral Cd(II) complexes with dual chiral components have been synthesized by using a series of chiral ligands with different N-positions of pyridyl rings. Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide