Cationic Gold(I) Diarylallenylidene Complexes:Bonding Features and Ligand Effects

Using computational approaches, we qualitatively and quantitatively assess the bonding components of a series of experimentally characterized Au(I) diarylallenylidene complexes (N.Kim, R.A.Widenhoefer, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2018, 57, 4722-4726). Our results clearly demonstrate that Au(I) engages only weakly in pi-backbonding, which is, however, a tunable bonding component. Computationally identified trends in bonding are clearly correlated with the substitution patterns of the aryl substituents in the Au(I) diarylallenylidene complexes and good agreement is found with the previously reported experimental data, such as IR spectra, C-13 NMR chemical shifts and rates of decomposition together with their corresponding barrier heights, further substantiating the computational findings. The description of the bonding patterns in these complexes allow predictions of their spectroscopic features, their reactivity and stability

The Pentagonal-Pyramidal Hexamethylbenzene Dication:Many Shades of Coordination Chemistry at Carbon

A recent report on the crystal structure of the pentagonal-pyramidal hexamethylbenzene dication C-6(CH3)(6)(2+) by Malischewski and Seppelt [Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2017, 56, 368] confirmed the structural proposal made in the first report of this compound in 1973 by Hogeveen and Kwant [Tetrahedron Lett. 1973, 14, 1665]. The widespread attention that this compound quickly gained led us to reinvestigate its electronic structure. On the basis of intrinsic bond orbital analysis, effective oxidation state analysis, ring current analysis, and comparison with well-established coordination complexes, it is demonstrated that the central carbon atom behaves like a transition metal. The central (apical) carbon atom, although best described as a highly Lewis-acidic carbon atom coordinated with an anionic cyclopentadienyl ligand, is also capable of acting as an electron-pair donor to a formal CH3+ group. The different roles of coordination chemistry are discussed

Ultrafast Excited State Dynamics in a First Generation Photomolecular Motor

Efficient photomolecular motors will be critical elements in the design and development of molecular machines. Optimisation of the quantum yield for photoisomerisation requires a detailed understanding of molecular dynamics in the excited electronic state. Here we probe the primary photophysical processes in the archetypal first generation photomolecular motor, with sub-50 fs time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. A bimodal relaxation is observed with a 100 fs relaxation of the Franck-Condon state to populate a red-shifted state with a reduced transition moment, which then undergoes multi-exponential decay on a picosecond timescale. Oscillations due to the excitation of vibrational coherences in the S 1 state are seen to survive the ultrafast structural relaxation. The picosecond relaxation reveals a strong solvent friction effect which is thus ascribed to torsion about the C−C axle. This behaviour is contrasted with second generation photomolecular motors; the principal differences are explained by the existence of a barrier on the excited state surface in the case of the first-generation motors which is absent in the second generation. These results will help to provide a basis for designing more efficient molecular motors in the future

Predicting Stable Molecular Structures for (RNC)(2)(AuX)-X-I Complexes

Calculations have been performed at the MP2 and DFT levels for investigating the reasons for the difficulties in synthesizing bis(isocyanide)gold(I) halide complexes. Three-coordinated gold(I) complexes of the type (R3P)(2)(AuX)-X-I (1) can be synthesized, whereas the analogous isocyanide complexes (RNC)(2)(AuX)-X-I (2) are not experimentally known. The molecular structures of (R3P)(2)(AuX)-X-I (X = Cl, Br, and I) and (RNC)(2)(AuX)-X-I with X = halide, cyanide, nitrite, methylthiolate, and thiocyanate are compared and structural differences are discussed. Calculations of molecular properties elucidate which factors determine the strength of the gold-ligand interactions in (RNC)(2)(AuX)-X-I. The linear bonding mode of RNC favors a T-shaped geometry instead of the planar Y-shaped trigonal structure of (R3P)(2)(AuX)-X-I complexes that have been synthesized. An increased polarity of the Au-X bond in 2 leads to destabilization of the Y-shaped structure. Chalcogen-containing ligands or cyanide appear to be good X-ligand candidates for synthesis of (RNC)(2)(AuX)-X-I complexes.Peer reviewe

1,6-Carbene Transfer: Gold-Catalyzed Oxidative Diyne Cyclizations

In the presence of a gold catalyst an unprecedented oxidative cyclization of diynes takes place. The reaction cascade is initiated by an oxygen transfer from a <i>N</i>-oxide onto a gold-activated alkyne. The formed α-oxo carbene is transferred across the second alkyne yielding a stabilized vinyl carbene/cation. Alkyl migration or sp³-CH insertion then terminates the catalytic cycle by formation of highly substituted functionalized indenones. A 1,6-carbene shift could be supported by the oxidation of the vinyl carbene. This protocol represents an attractive alternative to procedures which are based on the metal-catalyzed decomposition of hazardous, not easily accessible, diazo compounds