Quantum Information Molecules Based on the Functionalised Carboxylic Group on the {Cr7Ni} Ring

Abstract

This thesis explores the physical property and characterisation of a series of {Cr7Ni} wheels which contain unpaired electrons spins by bottom-up synthetic methods. These molecular wheels can achieve changes in spin properties through functionalization of their sites, including metal ions attached to Cr, bridged ligand anions, and peripheral carboxylates. These compounds can be studied by physics methods such as Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR), X-ray single crystal diffraction, and inelastic neutron scattering (INS). Functionalized molecular wheels greatly enrich the family of {Cr7Ni} ring. This thesis has focused on functionalized heterometallic [nPr2NH2] [Cr7NiF8(O2CtBu)16], {Cr7Ni} wheels, which will be a promising quantum bit candidate. This thesis studies the electronic properties of the superposition by EPR by attempting to attach TEMPO radicals to the heterometallic ring. The synthesis method is to produce [nPr2NH2] [Cr7NiF8(O2CtBu))16-X(O2CR)X] by substituting the peripheral pivalate, wherein R is a functional group, and the carboxylate used in this research is 4-Formylbenzoic acid. A variety of new {Cr7Ni} carboxylate-substituted compounds have been synthesised and characterised, including mono-substituted equatorial product, mono-substituted axial product, and E-A(Equatorial-Axial), A-A(Axial-Axial) configuration di-substituted product, a periphery functionalized carboxylate with TEMPO {Cr7Ni} wheel compound. These products were studied by infrared spectroscopy, electrospray ionisation mass spectroscopy (ES-MS), elemental analysis, EPR and X-ray single-crystal diffraction, and information such as g value and the single-crystal structure are reported.

Date of Award	1 Aug 2020
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Eric Mcinnes (Supervisor), Richard Winpenny (Supervisor) & Grigore Timco (Supervisor)