Dynamic, reversible oxidative addition of highly polar bonds to a transition metal

The combination of Pt0 complexes and indium trihalides leads to compounds that form equilibria in solution between their In-X oxidative addition (OA) products (PtII indyl complexes) and their metal-only Lewis pair (MOLP) isomers (LnPt→InX3). The position of the equilibria can be altered reversibly by changing the solvent, while the equilibria can be reversibly and irreversibly driven towards the MOLP products by addition of further donor ligands. The results mark the first observation of an equilibrium between MOLP and OA isomers, as well as the most polar bond ever observed to undergo reversible oxidative addition to a metal complex. In addition, we present the first structural characterization of MOLP and oxidative addition isomers of the same compound. The relative energies of the MOLP and OA isomers were calculated by DFT methods, and the possibility of solvent-mediated isomerization is discussed

Nucleophilic Substitution at a Coordinatively Saturated Five-Membered NHC∙Haloborane Centre

In this paper, we have used a saturated five-membered N-Heterocyclic carbene (5SIDipp = 1,3-bis-(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazolin-2-ylidine) for the synthesis of SNHC-haloboranes adducts and their further nucleophilic substitutions to put unusual functional groups at the central boron atom. The reaction of 5-SIDipp with RBCl2 yields Lewis-base adducts, 5-SIDipp·RBCl2 [R = H (1), Ph (2)]. The hydrolysis of 1 gives the NHC stabilized boric acid, 5-SIDipp·B(OH)3 (3), selectively. Replacement of chlorine atoms from 1 and 2 with one equivalent of AgOTf led to the formation of 5-SIDipp·HBCl(OTf) (4) and 5-SIDipp·PhBCl(OTf) (5a), where all the substituents on the boron atoms are different. The addition of two equivalents of AgNO3 to 2 leads to the formation of rare di-nitro substituted 5-SIDipp·BPh(NO3)2 (6). Further, the reaction of 5-SIDipp with B(C6F5)3 in tetrahydrofuran and diethyl ether shows a frustrated Lewis pair type small molecule activated products, 7 and 8

Synthesis and Structure of [{PhC(NtBu)2}2Ge2(μ-S)2Cl2] and a Germanium Dithiocarboxylate Analogue

Sen SS, Ghadwal R, Kratzert D, Stern D, Roesky HW, Stalke D. Synthesis and Structure of [{PhC(NtBu)2}2Ge2(μ-S)2Cl2] and a Germanium Dithiocarboxylate Analogue. Organometallics. 2011;30(5):1030-1033

End-on nitrogen insertion of a diazo compound into a germanium (II) hydrogen bond and a comparable reaction with diethyl azodicarboxylate

A happy ending: The germanium(II) hydride [LGeH], where L=[HC{(CMe)(2,6-iPr2C6H3N)}2], reacts with a diazoalkane to form the hydrazone derivative (see picture). The reaction proceeds through the unprecedented end-on nitrogen insertion of the diazo compound

A Remarkable End-On Activation of Diazoalkane and Cleavage of Both C–Cl Bonds of Dichloromethane with a Silylene to a Single Product with Five-Coordinate Silicon Atoms

The 1:1 reaction of benzamidinato-stabilized chlorosilylene PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂SiCl (<b>1</b>) with CH­(SiMe₃)­N₂ resulted in the formation of colorless [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Si­(Cl)­{N₂CH­(SiMe₃)}]₂ (<b>2</b>), which consists of a four-membered Si₂N₂ ring. Surprisingly, N₂ elimination from the diazoalkane did not occur, but rather an end-on activation of the nitrogen was observed. For the mechanism, we propose the formation of a silaimine complex <b>A</b> as an intermediate, which is formed during the reaction and dimerized under [2 + 2] cycloaddition to <b>2</b>. In contrast, treatment of <b>1</b> with dichloromethane afforded a 2:1 product, [{PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Si­(Cl₂)}₂CH₂] (<b>3</b>), which is obviously formed by oxidative addition under cleavage of both C–Cl bonds and formation of two Si–Cl and two Si–C bonds. Both silicon atoms in <b>3</b> are five-coordinate. Compounds <b>2</b> and <b>3</b> were characterized by single-crystal X-ray studies, multinuclear NMR spectroscopy, and EI-mass spectrometry

A Remarkable End-On Activation of Diazoalkane and Cleavage of Both C–Cl Bonds of Dichloromethane with a Silylene to a Single Product with Five-Coordinate Silicon Atoms

The 1:1 reaction of benzamidinato-stabilized chlorosilylene PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂SiCl (<b>1</b>) with CH­(SiMe₃)­N₂ resulted in the formation of colorless [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Si­(Cl)­{N₂CH­(SiMe₃)}]₂ (<b>2</b>), which consists of a four-membered Si₂N₂ ring. Surprisingly, N₂ elimination from the diazoalkane did not occur, but rather an end-on activation of the nitrogen was observed. For the mechanism, we propose the formation of a silaimine complex <b>A</b> as an intermediate, which is formed during the reaction and dimerized under [2 + 2] cycloaddition to <b>2</b>. In contrast, treatment of <b>1</b> with dichloromethane afforded a 2:1 product, [{PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Si­(Cl₂)}₂CH₂] (<b>3</b>), which is obviously formed by oxidative addition under cleavage of both C–Cl bonds and formation of two Si–Cl and two Si–C bonds. Both silicon atoms in <b>3</b> are five-coordinate. Compounds <b>2</b> and <b>3</b> were characterized by single-crystal X-ray studies, multinuclear NMR spectroscopy, and EI-mass spectrometry

Access to Silicon(II)– and Germanium(II)–Indium Compounds

Despite the remarkable ability of N-heterocyclic silylene to act as a Lewis base and form stable Lewis adducts with group 13 elements such as boron, aluminum, and gallium, there has been no such comparable investigation with indium and the realization of a stable silylene–indium complex has still remained elusive. Similarly, a germylene–indium complex is also presently unknown. We describe herein the reactions of [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂SiN­(SiMe₃)₂] (<b>1</b>) and [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂GeN­(SiMe₃)₂] (<b>4</b>) with InCl₃ and InBr₃ that have resulted in the first silylene–indium complexes, [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Si­{N­(SiMe₃)₂}→InCl₃] (<b>2</b>) and [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Si­{N­(SiMe₃)₂}→InBr₃] (<b>3</b>), as well as the first germylene–indium complexes, [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Ge­{N­(SiMe₃)₂}→InCl₃] (<b>5</b>) and [PhC­(N<i>t</i>Bu)₂Ge­{N­(SiMe₃)₂}→InBr₃] (<b>6</b>). The solid-state structures of all species have been validated by single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Note that <b>5</b> and <b>6</b> are the first structurally characterized organometallic compounds that feature a Ge–In single bond (apart from the compounds in Zintl phases). Theoretical calculations reveal that the Si­(II)→In bonds in <b>2</b> and <b>3</b> and the Ge­(II)→In bonds in <b>5</b> and <b>6</b> are dative bonds

Stable Silaimines with Three- and Four-Coordinate Silicon Atoms

Samuel PP, Azhakar R, Ghadwal R, et al. Stable Silaimines with Three- and Four-Coordinate Silicon Atoms. Inorganic Chemistry. 2012;51(20):11049-11054.The reactions of silylenes with organic azides are quite diverse, depending on the substituents of the silylene center and on the nature of the azide employed. Elusive silaimine with three-coordinate silicon atom L1SiN(2,6-Triip2-C6H3) (5) {L1 = CH[(C═CH2)(CMe)(2,6-iPr2C6H3N)2] and Triip = 2,4,6-triisopropylphenyl} was synthesized by treatment of the silylene L1Si (1) with a sterically demanding 2,6-bis(2,4,6-triisopropylphenyl)phenyl azide (2,6-Triip2C6H3N3). The reaction of Lewis base-stabilized dichlorosilylene L2SiCl2 (2) {L2 = 1,3-bis(2,6-iPr2C6H3)imidazol-2-ylidene} with Ph3SiN3 afforded four-coordinate silaimine L2(Cl2)SiNSiPh3 (6). Treatment of 2,6-Triip2C6H3N3 with L3SiCl (3) (L3 = PhC(NtBu)2) yielded silaimine L3(Cl)SiN(2,6-Triip2-C6H3) (7) possessing a four-coordinate silicon atom. The reactions of L3SiN(SiMe3)2 (4) with adamantyl and trimethylsilyl azide furnished silaimine compounds with a four-coordinate silicon atom L3(N(Ad)SiMe3)SiN(SiMe3) (8) (Ad = adamantyl) and L3(N(SiMe3)2)SiN(SiMe3) (9). Compound 8 was formed by migration of one of the SiMe3 groups. Compounds 5–9 are stable under inert atmosphere and were characterized by elemental analysis, NMR spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray studies