Synthesis, Crystal Structure, and Characterization of Two Novel Five‐coordinate Zinc(II) Complexes with the Tripod Ligand Tris( N ‐methylbenzimidazol‐2‐yl‐methyl)amine and α, β ‐unsaturated Carboxylates

Two novel five‐coordinate zinc(II) complexes with the tripod ligand tris( N ‐methylbenzimidazol‐2‐ylmethyl)amine (Mentb) and two different α, β ‐unsaturated carboxylates, with the composition [Zn(Mentb)(acrylate)] (ClO 4 )·DMF·1.5CH 3 OH ( 1 ) and [Zn(Mentb)(cinnamate)](ClO 4 )·2DMF·0.5CH 3 OH ( 2 ), were synthesized and characterized by means of elemental analyses, electrical conductivity measurements, IR, UV, and 1 H NMR spectra. The crystal structure of two complexes have been determined by a single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction method, and show that the Zn II atom is bonded to a Mentb ligand and a α, β ‐unsaturated carboxylate molecule through four N atoms and one O atom, resulting in a distorted trigonal‐bipyramidal coordination [ τ ( 1 ) = 0.853, τ ( 2 ) = 0.855], with approximate C 3 symmetry.