Self-assembly of Zn(salphen) complexes: Steric regulation, stability studies and crystallographic analysis revealing an unexpected dimeric 3,3′-t-Bu-substituted Zn(salphen) complexElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Copies of relevant NMR and MS spectra, crystallographic comments. CCDC reference numbers 755295 (2), 755296 (18), 755297 (6), 755298 (19), 756455 (11), 756456 (9) and 756457 (5). For ESI and crystallographic data in CIF or other electronic format see DOI: 10.1039/b9

The self-assembly features of a series of (non)symmetrical Zn(salphen) complexes have been studied in detail by X-ray crystallography, NMR and UV-vis techniques. The combined data demonstrate that the stability of these dimeric assemblies and the relative position of each monomeric unit within the dinuclear structure depend on the location and combination of the aromatic ring substituents. The self-assembly of a series of Zn(salphen) complexes has been investigated, and shows a large dependence on the nature of the ligand backbone.