Quantum chemical investigation of a dinuclear iridium porphyrin and its dipositive π-cation biradical

Quantum chemical calculations at both HF/6-31G and B3LYP/6-31G levels have been performed on a dinuclear iridium porphyrin and its dipositive π-cation biradical. The dimer consists of two units of an iridium octaethylporphyrin (OEP) ring with an axial chlorine and a bridging ligand, 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane (dppe), and has the formula of [(OEP)IrCl]2dppe. Geometric parameters and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance from the theoretical calculations and the X-ray crystallographic determinations have been compared for the neutral dimer. With few exceptions, the optimized geometric parameters, in general, agree well with X-ray crystallographic analysis. However, comparisons between the theoretical calculations and the experimental values reveal that some of the calculated bond lengths are more reasonable for a specific type of bond than those observed. The calculated 1H chemical shifts are in good agreement with values obtained from experiment. In addition, theoretical calculations on the structure of the dipositive π-cation biradical, {[(OEP)IrCl]2dppe}2+, have been conducted. Unlike other cofacial π-cation dimers, the bond length alternation around the central 16-membered C12N4 ring is not predicted to exist in this dipositive π-cation biradical. The natural population analysis of the neutral and the biradical dimers at both levels suggests that the bonding between the iridium and the porphyrin is more covalent than ionic.