[Sm6O4(cbz)10(thf)6]·2C7H8: A Polynuclear Samarium Oxo Cluster Obtained from Carbazole-Driven Oxidation of Samarium Nanoparticles

Zerovalent samarium nanoparticles (1.7 ± 0.2 nm in size) are used as the starting material to prepare single crystals of the novel polynuclear samarium oxo cluster [Sm6O4(cbz)10(thf)6]·2C7H8. The reaction is performed by oxidation with carbazole (CbzH) in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at 50 °C with subsequent crystallization in toluene (C7H8). The oxo cluster contains noncharged molecular units with a central Sm6O4 core. Single-crystal structure analysis and infrared spectroscopy confirm the oxidation of CbzH with the formation of (cbz)−. Polynuclear carbazole complexes are generally rare and here prepared using metal nanoparticles as a reactive starting material for the first time. The reaction with CbzH as a sterically demanding ligand exemplarily shows the feasibility of rare-earth-metal nanoparticles for obtaining new compounds with complex composition and structure.