Dinuclear metal complexes composed of peptide chains: Solvent-induced switching and inversion of the metal-centered chiralityElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Experimental details and additional spectroscopic data. See DOI: 10.1039/c1sc00693b

The peptide-linked bisbipyridine separated by a rigid or flexible spacer formed a dinuclear Fe II complex, which showed a unique solvent-induced inversion and onoff switching of the metal-centered chirality depending on the spacer, resulting from the supramolecular structural change between a dinuclear helicate and a mono peptide ligand-bridged dinuclear Fe II complex. The rigid and flexible spacer groups connecting the peptide residues are responsible for these unique structural and chiroptical properties occurring at the metal center. The peptide-linked bisbipyridine separated by a rigid or flexible spacer formed a dinuclear Fe II complex, which showed a unique solvent-induced inversion and onoff switching of the metal-centered chirality depending on the spacer.