Crystal Structure and Magnetic Properties of a Novel Helical Coordination Polymer [Cu2(pda)2(phen)2(H2O)2]·6H2O

A novel coordination polymer of CuII with flexible ligands, namely, [Cu2(pda)2(phen)2(H2O)2]·6H2O (1) (H2pda = 1,3-phenylenediacetic acid, phen = 1,10-phenanthroline), was synthesized by hydrothermal reactions and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analyses, elemental analysis and IR spectroscopy. In complex 1, the CuII ions are linked by pda ligands to form 1D helical chains. The adjacent chains are related by the π–π stacking interactions and exhibit opposite chirality, which result in extended 2D heterochiral helical-layers. Furthermore, the 2D helical-layers are assembled into 3D supramolecular edifices through heterochiral helical hydrogen bonding. In addition, the thermal stability and magnetic properties of 1 are reported.