Synthesis and Crystal Structure of a 3D Samarium-Organic Framework Containing Vacant Chelating Sites

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) have been intensely studied over the last few decades1 because their pores and optical properties can be employed in various applications including gas storage, ion-exchange, catalysis, and fluore-scence technology.2 The characteristics of MOFs depend greatly on the properties of their metal ions and organic linker compounds, and thus a proper choice of the building blocks is of significant importance in preparation of func-tional MOFs. While most transition metal ions can be used as the framework metal centers, not all organic compounds can be utilized as the linker compounds. The organic linker compounds are usually multidentate aromatic carboxylic acids possessing high thermal stability because they are typi-cally made through thermal solvolysis. This characteristic of the organic linkers, however, has restricted the diversity o