How does a coordinated radical ligand affect the spin crossover properties in an octahedral iron(II) complex?

The influence of a coordinated π-radical on the spin crossover properties of an octahedral iron(II) complex was investigated by preparing and isolating the iron(II) complex containing the tetradentate N,N'-dimethyl-2,11-diaza[3.3](2,6)pyridinophane and the radical anion of N,N'-diphenyl-acenaphtene-1,2-diimine as ligands. This spin crossover complex was obtained by a reduction of the corresponding low-spin iron(II) complex with the neutral diimine ligand, demonstrating that the reduction of the strong π-acceptor ligand is accompanied by a decrease in the ligand field strength.