A library of tetrathiafulvalene ligands was elaborated and used in different synthetic ways in order to design mono-, di-, trinuclear and polymeric coordination compounds. They display electrochemical, magnetic and photophysical properties that make them good candidates for future multifunctional conducting materials.

The “through bond” approach has been recently developed to increase the interaction between the mobile π and localized d electrons in multifunctional molecular materials involving tetrathiafulvalene-based ligands. This article reviews the 3d and 4d coordination complexes and polymers elaborated from a library of tetrathiafulvalene derivatives containing ligands obtained recently in our group. The different synthetic ways of the complexes are highlighted as well as their chemical and physical properties.