The Structural Role of the Triflate Anion in the Non-Covalent Silver Polymer [Ag(LOH)2(CF3SO3)(CH3CN)] {LOH = α-(4-Pyridyl)benzhydrol}

Ag(CF3SO3) was reacted with the ligand α‐(4‐pyridyl)benzhydrol (LOH) in order to build a mixed organic/inorganic analogue of wheel‐and‐axle diols. In the resulting [Ag(LOH)2(CF3SO3)(CH3CN)] complex, the metal is four‐coordinate, with two pyridines trans each other and a triflate and an acetonitrile group completing a sawhorse geometry. The main structural motif is based on the strongest and most directional tectons, the coordination bond Ag−O and the hydrogen bonds −OH···O−S−O···HO−. Secondly, the sixfold phenyl embrace, CH3···π, CH3···CF3 and Ag···F tectons also direct the crystal assembly. A new synthon originating from the combination of the S−O···HO−, the π···CH3 and the CH3···CF3 individual tectons is identified. The structural roles of the anion and of the solvent are discussed. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2004)