Antimicrobial activities of cadmium (II) and nickel (II) complexes containing pyridine ring: Investigation of crystallographic, spectroscopic, Hirshfeld surface analysis, and TD/DFT calculations.

Two complexes [Cd(L)2(NO3)2] (1) and [Ni(L)2(OH)2][Ni(L)2(CH3OH)2](NO3)2·CH3OH (2) (L = 2‐[2‐pyridyl]‐4‐methyl‐1,2‐dihydroquinazolin 3‐oxide) were gained via complexation an amount of the new ligand L with different nitrate salts. The obtained complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, spectroscopy, and X‐ray crystallographic. In the crystal structure, centrosymmetric 1 adopted slightly distorted octahedral geometry. On the other hand, the independent unit of 2 contained two half Ni (II) complex located on a center of symmetry, differing for the axial ligand, two uncoordinated nitrate ions, and one lattice methanol molecule. Both the crystal structures formed a 3‐D supramolecular architecture through different interactions (H‐bonds, π···π, etc). X‐ray crystallography revealed that complexes 1 and 2 had 2:1 ligand‐to‐metal ratios. Most strikingly, 1 performed different fluorescence behaviors in diverse solvents, whereas 2 exhibited fluorescence quenching. When 1 was dissolution in N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) solvent system, it has better fluorescence properties. The geometry optimization and HOMOs and LUMOs energies of both complexes were calculated by density functional theory (DFT) methods, and the nucleophilic and electrophilic attack sites were confirmed with electrostatic potential (ESP) calculations. Preliminary investigation of antimicrobial activities of all compounds against Gram‐negative bacteria (Escherichia coli) and Gram‐positive bacteria (Bacillus subtilis) was reported. Additionally, CrystalExplorer program was used to quantify the noncovalent interactions in complexes 1 and 2 through Hirshfeld surface analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]