In the title salt, C10H11N4O2 (+)·I(-), the asymmetric unit consists of a pyridinium cation bearning a (1-methyl-5-nitro-1H-imidazol-2-yl)methyl group at the N position and an iodide anion. The imidazole ring is quasiplanar, with a maxiumum deviation of 0.0032 (16) Å, and forms a dihedral angle of 67.39 (6)° with the plane of the pyridinium ring. The crystal packing can be described as alternating zigzag layers of cations parallel to the (001) plane, which are sandwiched by the iodide ions. The structure features two types of hydrogen bonds (C-H⋯O and C-H⋯I), viz. cation-anion and cation-cation, which lead to the form ation of a three-dimensional network.
Keywords: crystal structure; hydrogen bonding; imidazole; iodide; pyridinium.