Bis{μ-2,2'-[ethane-1,2-diylbis(nitrilo-methyl-idyne)]diphenolato}dinickel(II).

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, [Ni(2)(C(16)H(14)N(2)O(2))(2)], contains an Ni(II) cation which is coordinated by two imine N atoms and by two phenolate O atoms of the salen ligand {salen = N,N'-bis-(salicyl-idene)ethane-1,2-diamine or 2,2'-[ethane-1,2-diyl-bis(nitrilo-methyl-idyne)]diphenol}, leading to a distorted square-planar conformation. When a secondary Ni-O inter-action > 2.41†à to the neighbouring phenolate O atom is considered, two mol-ecules are linked into a centrosymmetric dimer with an overall square-pyramidal coordination for the Ni(II) cation. Weak π-π inter-actions with a shortest interplanar distance of 3.704†à help to stabilize the crystal structure.