Three Cd(II) and Zn(II) coordination polymers, including {[Cd(3-bpo)(mip)(H2O)](H2O)(2)}(n) (1), {[Cd(4-bpo)(hip)(H2O)](H2O)(4)}(n) (2), and {[Zn(4-bpo)(tp)](CH3OH)}(n) (3) were synthesized from the reactions of Cd-II or Zn-II nitrate with mixed organic ligands [3-bpo = 2,5-bis(3-pyridyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole, H(2)mip = 5-methylisophthalic acid, 4-bpo = 2,5-bis(4-pyridyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole, H(2)hip = 5-hydroxylisophthalic acid, H(2)tp = terephthalic acid] under the similar layered diffusion condition. The resulting crystalline materials 1-3 were characterized by IR, microanalysis, powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) techniques. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction indicates a 1-D tubular motif for 1, a 1-D dual-track array for 2, and a 2-D grid-like pattern for 3, constructed via different metal-ligand coordination contacts. Higher-dimensional supramolecular architectures are further assembled in 1-3 via H-bonding and aromatic stacking interactions. In addition, thermal stability and fluorescence of these polymeric complexes were also investigated and discussed. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.