Syntheses, crystal structure, spectroscopic and photoluminescence studies of mononuclear copper(II), manganese(II), cadmium(II), and a 1D polymeric Cu(II) complexes with a pyrimidine derived Schiff base ligand

•Pyrimidine derived Schiff base ligand has been prepared.•Wide structural variety of complexes by the ligand was prepared.•IR, UV–Vis spectra support structural moiety.•Cd(II) complex is fluorescence active rather than other.

The complexation behaviour of Schiff base ligand 2-((2-(4,6-dimethylpyrimidin-2-yl)hydrazono)methyl)phenol [HL] towards different metal centres is reported by the syntheses and characterization of three mononuclear Cu(II), Mn(II) and Cd(II) complexes, [Cu(L)(H2O)2](NO3)(H2O) (1), [Mn(L)2](CH3OH) (2), [Cd(L)2](CH3OH) (3) and a 1D polymeric Cu(II) complex, [Cu(L)(ClO4)(C2N2O2H)]n(CH3OH) (4) respectively. In the complexes 1–4 the deprotonated uninegative tridentate ligand serves as NNO donor where one pyrimidine ring N, the azomethine N and the salicyl hydroxyl oxygen atoms are coordinatively active. The complex 1 has almost square pyramidal geometry [τ = 0.2081] whereas the metal centres maintain distorted octahedral geometry in the remaining three complexes 2–4. All the complexes are characterized by X-ray crystallography. The Cd(II) complex has considerable fluorescence while the rest of the complexes and the ligand molecule are fluorescent silent.