Electrosynthesis of iron and cobalt molecular materials

Molecular materials are formed by the condensation and rearrangement of molecular units. Their microstructure is of special interest because they are generally formed by a regular molecular pattern that can generate preferential ways for electrical conduction, which is why they are sometimes called quasi-one-dimensional solids or low-dimensional linear chains. This work reports the synthesis and characterization of iron and cobalt molecular materials that were formed through an oxidation-reduction reaction in an electrosynthesis cell from electronic acceptor and donor species. Material characterization was made through infrared (IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). These materials have a structure of polymeric chains formed from the coordination of the metallic ion to the phthalocyanine with the organic compound 1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone. The synthesized materials show large chemical and thermal stabilities which may lead to their application in thin-film technology. Their room-temperature thermal conductivity in pellet form is of the order of 1×10^-6Ω^-1cm^-1.