On the sensitivity of f electrons to their chemical environment

Density functional calculations have been carried out on three families of lanthanide complexes of D-3 or C-4 symmetry, namely [Ln((HO)-O-2)(9)](3+), [Ln(DPA)(3)](3-), and [Ln(DOTAM)](3+) (Ln = Y, La, Lu; DPA = pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylate; DOTAM = 1,4,7,10-tetracarbamoylmethyl-1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane), to get some insights concerning the sensitivity of 4f electrons to the surrounding ligands. We show that the electron density accumulations found within 0.7 angstrom of the metal center, that precisely give the opposite image of the coordination sphere as they are located trans with respect to the Ln-ligand bonds, are almost exclusively due the f electrons. This polarization of the 4f electrons in lanthanides complexes has therefore to be considered as a general feature that plays a crucial role in some experimentally observed phenomenons such as the dependency of quadratic hyperpolarizability to the number of f electrons in [Ln(DPA)(3)](3-) complexes that we have evidenced.