“Nacktes” Ga+ und In+ als reine Acceptorliganden: Struktur und Bindungsverhältnisse von [GaPt(GaCp*)4][BArF]

Insights into the Composition and Structural Chemistry of Gallium(I) Triflate

"GaOTf" is a simple, convenient source of low-valent gallium for synthetic chemistry and catalysis. However, little is currently known about its composition or reactivity. In this work, 71 Ga NMR spectroscopy shows the presence of [Ga(arene)n ]+ salts on oxidation of Ga metal with AgOTf in arene solvents. However, a more complex picture of speciation is uncovered by X-ray diffraction studies. In all cases, mixed-valence compounds containing Ga-arene and Ga-OTf coordination motifs, in addition to an unusual "naked" [Ga]+ ion, are found. Addition of 18-crown-6 allows for the isolation of a discrete GaI crown complex. Evidence of a potential intermediate in the formation of "GaOTf" has been isolated in the form of the bimetallic silver(I)/gallium(I) cluster anion [Ag4 {Ga(OTf)3 }4 (μ-Ga)6 (OTf)4 ]2- .

Exploring the potential energy surface of E₂P₄ clusters (E=Group 13 element): the quest for inverse carbon-free sandwiches

Inverse carbon-free sandwich structures with formula E2P4 (E=Al, Ga, In, Tl) have been proposed as a promising new target in main-group chemistry. Our computational exploration of their corresponding potential-energy surfaces at the S12h/TZ2P level shows that indeed stable carbon-free inverse-sandwiches can be obtained if one chooses an appropriate Group 13 element for E. The boron analogue B2P4 does not form the D(4h)-symmetric inverse-sandwich structure, but instead prefers a D(2d) structure of two perpendicular BP2 units with the formation of a double B-B bond. For the other elements of Group 13, Al-Tl, the most favorable isomer is the D(4h) inverse-sandwich structure. The preference for the D(2d) isomer for B2P4 and D(4h) for their heavier analogues has been rationalized in terms of an isomerization-energy decomposition analysis, and further corroborated by determination of aromaticity of these species.

Organometallic chemistry of Ga(+): formation of an unusual gallium dimer in the coordination sphere of ruthenium

New insights into the distinct organometallic chemistry of the Ga(+) ion are presented. Ga(+) reacts as a strong electrophile with the electron rich ligand trismethylene-methane (C(CH(2))(3) (2-)) attached at Ru by insertion into a Ru--C bond. The resulting "gallamethylallyl" ligand behaves like strong nucleophile similar to known monovalent GaR species. This donor property leads to the dimeric structure of the product [{Ru(GaCp*)(3)[eta(3)-(CH(2))(2)C{CH(2)(mu-Ga)}]}(2)][(BAr(F))(2)] (4) (Cp*=C(5)Me(5), [BAr(F)]=[B{C(6)H(3)(CF(3))(2)}(4)]). Very unexpectedly, the two gallium ligands in this dimer are found in close vicinity to each other with a distance in the range of Ga--Ga bonds. Indeed, AIM calculations confirm a weak attractive closed shell Ga--Ga interaction. Finally, a novel example of a complex with substituent-free Ga(+) as a ligand was found in the compound [Ru(PCy(3))(2)(GaCp*)(2)(Ga)][BAr(F)] (6) (Cy=C(6)H(11), cyclohexyl), the very short Ru--Ga bond length confirming the assumption that Ga(+) represents a pure sigma/pi-accepting ligand in this case.

Pt(0) and Pd(0) olefin complexes of the metalloid N-heterocyclic carbene analogues [E(I)(ddp)] (ddp=2-{(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)amino}-4-{(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imino}-2-pentene; E=Al, Ga): ligand substitution, H--H and Si--H bond activation, and cluster formation

Various products of the reaction of [E(ddp)] (ddp=2-{(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)amino}-4-{(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imino}-2-pentene; E=Al, Ga) with Pt(0) and Pd(0) olefin complexes are reported. Thus, the reaction of [Pt(cod)(2)] (cod=1,5-cyclooctadiene) with two equivalents of [Ga(ddp)] yields [Pt(1,3-cod){Ga(ddp)}(2)] (1), whereas treatment of [Pd(2)(dvds)(3)] (dvds=1,1,3,3-tetramethyl1,3-divinyldisiloxane) with [E(ddp)] leads to the monomeric compounds [(dvds)Pd{E(ddp)}] (E=Ga (2 a), Al (2 b)) by substitution of the bridging dvds ligand. Both 1 and 2 a readily react with strong pi-acceptor ligands such as CO or tBuNC to give the dimeric compounds [M{mu(2)-Ga(ddp)}(L)] (L=CO, tBuNC; M=Pt (3 a, 5 a), Pd (3 b, 5 b)), respectively. Based on (1)H NMR spectroscopic data, [Pt{Ga(ddp)}(2)(CO)] is likely to be an intermediate in the formation of 3 a. Furthermore, reactions of 1 with H(2) and HSiEt(3) yield the monomeric compounds [Pt{Ga(ddp)}(2)(H)(2)] (7) and [Pt{Ga(ddp)}(2)(H)(SiEt(3))] (8). Finally, the reaction of [Pt(cod)(2)] with one equivalent of [Ga(ddp)] in the presence of H(2) in hexane gives the new dimeric cluster [Pt{mu(2)-Ga(ddp)}(H)(2)](2) (9).