The use of divergent 4,2':6',4″- and 3,2':6',3″-terpyridine ligands as linkers and/or nodes in extended coordination assemblies has gained in popularity over the last decade. However, there is also a range of coordination polymers which feature 2,2':6',2″-terpyridine metal-binding domains. Of the remaining 45 isomers of terpyridine, few have been utilized in extended coordination arrays. Here, we provide an overview of coordination polymers and networks containing isomers of terpyridine and either zinc(II) and cadmium(II). Although the motivation for investigations of many of these systems is their luminescent behavior, we have chosen to focus mainly on structural details, and we assess to what extent assemblies are reproducible. We also consider cases where there is structural evidence for competitive product formation. A point that emerges is the lack of systematic investigations.
Keywords: 2,2′:6′,2″-terpyridine; 3,2′:6′,3″-terpyridine; 4,2′:6′,4″-terpyridine; cadmium(II); coordination network; coordination polymer; zinc(II).