Reactions of H2salen (H2L, N,N′-ethylene bis(salicylideneimine)) with Yb(CF3SO3)3, Yb(OAc)3·4H2O and Yb(NO3)3·6H2O in MeOH–EtOH under reflux gave NIR luminescent complexes [Yb6L9(H2L)2] (1), [Yb3L3(HL)(OH)2] (2) and [Yb2L2(H2L)2(NO3)(MeOH)2]·NO3 (3), respectively.
