The syntheses of two novel polydentate pyridyl-thiazolyl ligands which contain an N-oxide unit on the central pyridyl ring are reported. Reaction of either of these ligands with Cd(ClO4)2·6H2O results in the formation of a dinuclear double helicate. The solid state structures of these transition metal helicates demonstrate the ability of the N-oxide unit to partition the ligands into two separate binding domains.
