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The elusive PcFe(DABCO)₂(Pc = phthalocyaninato(2-) ligand; DABCO = 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane) complex was prepared and characterized by UV-Vis, MCD,¹H NMR, and Mössbauer spectroscopies. The X-ray crystal structure of this complex indicates the longest Fe-N(DABCO) bond distance among all known PcFeL₂complexes with nitrogen donors as the axial ligands. The target compound is only stable in the presence of large access of the axial ligand and rapidly converts into the (PcFe)₂O [Formula: see text]-oxo dimer even at a modest temperature. The electronic structure of the PcFe(DABCO)₂complex was elucidated by DFT and TDDFT methods. The DFT calculations predicted a very small singlet-triplet gap in this compound. The femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy is indicative of extremely fast ([Formula: see text]200 fs) deactivation of the first excited state in PcFe(DABCO)₂with a lack of formation of the long-lived low-energy triplet state. 

Abstract The preparation of radicals with intense and redox‐switchable absorption beyond 1000 nm is a long‐standing challenge in the chemistry of functional dyes. Here we report the preparation of a series of unprecedented stable neutral nickel(II) and copper(II) complexes of “Manitoba dipyrromethenes” (MB‐DIPYs) in which the organic chromophore is present in the radical‐anion state. The new stable radicals have an intense absorption atλ_max∼1300 nm and can be either oxidized to regular [M^II(MB‐DIPY)]⁺(M=Cu or Ni) or reduced to [M^II(MB‐DIPY)]⁻compounds. The radical nature of the stable [M^II(MB‐DIPY)] complexes was confirmed by EPR spectroscopy with additional insight into their electronic structure obtained by UV‐Vis spectroscopy, electro‐ and spectroelectrochemistry, magnetic measurements, and X‐ray crystallography. The electronic structures and spectroscopic properties of the radical‐based chromophores were also probed by density functional theory (DFT) and time‐dependent DFT (TDDFT) calculations. These nickel(II) and copper(II) complexes represent the first stable radical compounds with a MB‐DIPY ligand.