N,N′-bis(3-methoxybenzylidene)ethane-1,2-diamine

The mol-ecule of the title bidentate Schiff base ligand, C18H20N2O2, has twofold crystallographic rotation symmetry, giving one half-mol-ecule per asymmetric unit. It adopts a twisted E configuration with respect to the azomethine C=N bond. The imino group is coplanar with the aromatic ring. The dihedral angle between the two benzene rings is 69.52 (5)°. The meth-oxy group is coplanar with the benzene ring, as indicated by the C - O - C - C torsion angle of -179.56 (8)°. In the unit cell, mol-ecules are linked together by inter-molecular C - H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming chains along the a axis; these chains are further stacked down the b axis by both inter-molecular C - H⋯O and C - H⋯π inter-actions.