THE CRYSTAL STRUCTURE OF DI-t-BUTYLSILANEDIOL AND ITS RELEVANCE TO THE LIQUID CRYSTALLINITY OF DIISOBUTYLSILANEDIOL

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/0022-328X(85)80027-9

The crystal structure of t-Bu2Si(OH)2 consist of hydrogen-bonded dimers linked by futher hydrogen bonding into (distorted) ladder chains, the type of structure previously postulated for solid i-Bu2Si(OH)2 to account for its ability to give a liquid crystal on heating.The six-membered rings of the dimers have a chair conformation with adjacent chairs inverted with respect to one another.The structure of the ladder chains is similar to that in t-Bu2Ge(OH)2, but the packings of the chains in the crystal are different.