Experimental and theoretical investigations of the redox behavior of the heterodichalcogenido ligands [(EP(i)Pr2)(TeP(i)Pr2)N](-) (E = S, Se): cyclic cations and acyclic dichalcogenide dimers.
The two-electron oxidation of the lithium salts of the heterodichalcogenidoimidodiphosphinate anions [(EP (i)Pr 2)(TeP (i)Pr 2)N] (-) ( 1a, E = S; 1b, E = Se) with iodine yields cyclic cations [(EP (i)Pr 2)(TeP (i)Pr 2)N] (+) as their iodide salts [(SP (i)Pr 2)(TeP (i)Pr 2)N]I ( 2a) and [(SeP (i)Pr 2)(TeP (i)Pr 2)N]I ( 2b). The five-membered rings in 2a and 2b both display an elongated E-Te bond as a consequence of an interaction between tellurium and the iodide anion. One-electron reduction of 2a and 2b with cobaltocene produces the neutral dimers (EP (i)Pr 2NP (i)Pr 2Te-) 2 ( 3a, E = S; 3b, E = Se), which are connected exclusively through a Te-Te bond. Two-electron reduction of 2a and 2b …
Experimental and theoretical investigations of the contact ion pairs formed by reactions of the anions [(EPR2)2N]- (R = (i)Pr, (t)Bu; E = S, Se) with the cations [(TePR2)2N]+ (R = (i)Pr, (t)Bu).
Reactions of the sodium salts [(EPR(2))(2)N]Na(TMEDA) (R = (i)Pr, (t)Bu; E = S, Se) with the iodide salts [(TePR(2))(2)N]I (R = (i)Pr, (t)Bu) in toluene produce the mixed-chalcogen systems [(EPR(2))(2)N][(TePR(2))(2)N] (6b, E = Se, R = (t)Bu; 6c, E = S, R = (t)Bu; 7b, E = Se, R = (i)Pr; 7c, E = S, R = (i)Pr). Compounds 6b, 6c, 7b, and 7c have been characterized in solution by variable-temperature multinuclear ((31)P, (77)Se, and (125)Te) NMR spectroscopy and in the solid state by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The structures are comprised of contact ion pairs linked by bonds between Te and S or Se atoms. For the tert-butyl derivatives 6b and 6c, the anionic half of the molecule is co…
Sodium Congener of the Classical Lithium Methylchromate Dimer: Synthetic, X-ray Crystallographic, and Magnetic Studies of Me8Cr2[Na(OEt2)]4
One of the milestone structures in the development of transition-metal complexes with metal metal bonds of multiple bond order was the lithium methylchromate dimer Me8Cr2[Li(donor)](4) (donor = THF or Et2O). Using a simple salt metathesis reaction mixing this compound with sodium tert-butoxide, the sodium congener Me8Cr2-[Na(OEt2)]4 has been synthesized as a green crystalline compound and isolated in 51% yield. Its solid-state structure was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Exhibiting exact crystallographic C-4h symmetry, this heavier alkali-metal chromate structure is also dimeric, formally comprising a (Me8Cr4)(4-) tetranionic core with four peripheral Na+ cations carrying s…
New Insights into the Chemistry of Imidodiphosphinates from Investigations of Tellurium-Centered Systems
Dichalcogenido-imidodiphosphinates, [N(PR(2)E)(2)](-) (R = alkyl, aryl), are chelating ligands that readily form cyclic complexes with main group metals, transition metals, lanthanides, and actinides. Since their discovery in the early 1960s, researchers have studied the structural chemistry of the resulting metal complexes (where E = O, S, Se) extensively and identified a variety of potential applications, including as NMR shift reagents, luminescent complexes in photonic devices, or single-source precursors for metal sulfides or selenides. In 2002, a suitable synthesis of the tellurium analogs [N(PR(2)Te)(2)](-) was developed. In this Account, we describe comprehensive investigations of t…