High-Spin Manganese(V)in an Active Center Analogueof the Oxygen-Evolving Complex

In a comprehensive investigation of the dinuclear [Mn₂O₃]⁺ cluster, the smallest dimanganese entity with two μ-oxo bridges and a terminal oxo ligand, and a simplified structural model of the active center in the oxygen-evolving complex, we identify antiferromagnetically coupled high-spin manganese centers in very different oxidation states of +2 and +5, but rule out the presence of a manganese(IV)-oxyl species by experimental X-ray absorption and X-ray magnetic circular dichroism spectroscopy combined with multireference calculations. This first identification of a high-spin manganese(V) center in any polynuclear oxidomanganese complex underscores the need for multireference computational methods to describe high-valent oxidomanganese species.