Electrical conduction studies on single crystals of transition-metal complexes containing linear chains of directly interacting metal atoms

Abstract

Single crystals of [Pt(NH3)4][PtCl4](Magnus's green salt), [Pt(NH3)4][PdCl4], and [Pd(NH3)4][PtCl4] exhibit anisotropic semiconducting properties with the highest conductivity in the direction of the metal-atom chain. The conductivities of the complexes which contain alternate Pd and Pt atoms are 104 times less than that of Magnus's green salt. Conduction studies in the direction of the metal-atom chain are also reported for single crystals of Ni(dmg)2, Pd(dmg)2 and some related compounds, and the conductivities in the two types of complexes are compared.