New
trinuclear RuPt<sub>2</sub> and heptanuclear RuPt<sub>6</sub> complex
salts are prepared by attaching Pt<sup>II</sup> 2,2′:6′,2″-terpyridine
(tpy) moieties to Ru<sup>II</sup> 4,4′:2′,2″:4″,4‴-quaterpyridine
(qpy) complexes. Characterization includes single crystal X-ray structures
for both polymetallic species. The visible absorption bands are primarily
due to Ru<sup>II</sup> → qpy metal-to-ligand charge-transfer
(MLCT) transitions, according to time-dependent density functional
theory (TD-DFT) calculations. These spectra change only slightly on
Pt coordination, while the orange-red emission from the complexes
shows corresponding small red-shifts, accompanied by decreases in
intensity. Cubic molecular nonlinear optical behavior has been assessed
by using Z-scan measurements. These reveal relatively high two-photon
absorption (2PA) cross sections σ<sub>2</sub>, with maximal
values of 301 GM at 834 nm (RuPt<sub>2</sub>) and 523 GM at 850 nm
(RuPt<sub>6</sub>) when dissolved in methanol or acetone, respectively.
Attaching Pt<sup>II</sup>(tpy) moieties triples or quadruples the
2PA activities when compared with the Ru<sup>II</sup>-based cores