Tridecanuclear Gd(III)-silsesquioxane: Synthesis, structure, and magnetic property

Polynuclear metal clusters, particularly those with aesthetically appealing structures, are of increasing interest. In this study, by employing C₄ symmetrical macrocyclic silsesquioxane ligand, a novel tridecanuclear Gd(III) cluster (Gd13) with a {Gd₁₃O₈} core featuring unprecedent body-centered Archimedean cuboctahedron conformation is realized using an efficient solvothermal method instead of conventional Schlenk techniques. To the best of our knowledge, Gd13 cluster is thus far the highest nuclearity of lanthanide-silsesquioxane. Moreover, a magnetic study reveals a weak antiferromagnetic interaction between adjacent Gd ions in the cluster. In addition, Gd13 exhibits cryogenic magnetocaloric effects with a maximum −ΔS_M value of 20 J kg⁻¹ K⁻¹ at 2 K and ΔH = 7.0 T.