Metal–Organic Frameworks as Platforms for the Controlled Nanostructuring of Single-Molecule Magnets

• DOI: 10.1021/jacs.5b06002
• Publication Date: 2015-07-13T23:21:26Z
• Authors: Darpandeep Aulakh; Joshua B. Pyser; Xuan Zhang; Andrey A. Yakovenko; Kim R. Dunbar; Mario Wriedt
• Keywords: 01 natural sciences; 0104 chemical sciences

The prototypical single-molecule magnet (SMM) molecule [Mn12O12(O2CCH3)16(OH2)4] was incorporated under mild conditions into a highly porous metal-organic framework (MOF) matrix as a proof of principle for controlled nanostructuring of SMMs. Four independent experiments revealed that the SMM clusters were successfully loaded in the MOF pores, namely synchrotron-based powder diffraction, physisorption analysis, and in-depth magnetic and thermal analyses. The results provide incontrovertible evidence that the magnetic composite, SMM@MOF, combines key SMM properties with the functional properties of MOFs. Most importantly, the incorporated SMMs exhibit a significantly enhanced thermal stability with SMM loading advantageously occurring at the periphery of the bulk MOF crystals with only a single SMM molecule isolated in the transverse direction of the pores.