LAUSR

Abstract A new layered hybrid of molybdenum oxide with covalently bonded electron-rich organic ligands, 3,8-phenanthroline, has been prepared. The structure of MoO3(3,8-phenanthroline)0.5 consists of corner-shared {MoO5N} octahedra. Raman spectra correlate very well with the structural data and illustrate the subtle choice of the ligands used can affect the vibrational characteristics of the Mo–O bonds. Magnetization measurements indicate the susceptibility changes only slightly with temperature in the high-temperature region above 50 K, which supports a Pauli paramagnetic metallic behaviour. The increase in the electronic density-of-states due to the electron-rich organic spacers is further confirmed by specific heat capacity measurements where the electronic specific heat coefficient, γ, is much higher compared with their bipyridyl counterparts.