Coordination modes of azide in cadmium azide complexes: A review of properties and applications

[Display omitted] •Exploring the diverse modes of azide in cadmium azide complexes: a review.•Unraveling the structural properties of cadmium azide complexes: a comprehensive analysis.•Applications of cadmium azide complexes: a promising area of research.•The impact of azide on cadmium complexes: a critical review of recent studies. Azide serves as a flexible bridge for cadmium, with various modes such as single or double bridges μ1,3-N3 (EE), μ1,1-N3 (EO), and (μ1,3-N3) (μ1,1-N3) (EE/EO), triple bridges μ1,1,3-N3 and μ1,1,1-N3, as well as the terminal mode. This comprehensive review provides an in-depth analysis of cadmium azide complexes, including their structural properties such as geometry, space group, and coordination number of cadmium. The properties were presented separately for different types of azides in dedicated tables, highlighting unique reported compounds. Additionally, we explored the potential effects of azide on complex properties. Cadmium azide complexes have a wide range of potential applications, including corrosion inhibition, antibacterial activity, thermal stability, and catalysis. To illustrate, we provide examples of each of these applications. Our study demonstrates that azide tends to act in the μ1,1 mode, with a commonly contributed μ1,3 mode resulting in an octahedral structure in most cases.