Organometallics 2006, 25, 2501-2504
2501
Donor-Stabilized Germyl Cations. Stable Pentacoordinate
Germanium Chloride [PhGe(OCH2CH2NMe2)2][Cl]
Victor N. Khrustalev,*,† Ivan A. Portnyagin,‡ Irina V. Borisova,§ Nikolay N. Zemlyansky,§
Yuri A. Ustynyuk,‡ Mikhail Yu. Antipin,† and Mikhail S. Nechaev‡
A. N. NesmeyanoV Institute of Organoelement Compounds, Russian Academy of Sciences,
Moscow, Russian Federation, Department of Chemistry, M. V. LomonosoV Moscow State UniVersity,
Moscow, Russian Federation, and A. V. TopchieV Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis,
Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federation
ReceiVed January 24, 2006
Intramolecularly coordinated phenylbis[N-(dimethylamino)ethoxy]germanium chloride (1) has been
1
prepared, and its structure has been investigated by H and 13C NMR spectroscopy in solutions and by
X-ray diffraction analysis in the crystal. Compound 1 tends to ionize in hydrogen-bond-donor solvents,
such as CHCl3, with the formation of the ionic pentacoordinate form [PhGe(OCH2CH2NMe2)2][Cl] (1b)
dominating over the neutral hexacoordinate form PhGe(OCH2CH2NMe2)2Cl (1a). Crystals grown from
CHCl3 also represent the form 1b. Salt 1b is the first compound stable under ambient conditions containing
a free germanium cation of the type [RGeX2]+ (R ) Alk, Ar; X ) substituent bonded to the germanium
atom by a heteroatom: Hal, OR, NR2) without bulky substituents at the germanium atom in the presence
of the highly nucleophilic chloride anion.
licity; (2) to hamper the approach of a nuclephile by sterically
demanding substituents at the E14 center; (3) to stabilize the
cations thermodynamically by introduction of auxiliary NR2 or
OR groups in the side chain, the electron lone pairs of which
could, in principle, be capable of bonding to the empty p-orbital
of the E14 center.
Stable group 14 salts of this kind with highly nucleophilic
anions, such as chloride, can be prepared, as a rule, only in the
presence of bulky ligands directly bonded to the E14 center.3b,l,n,4
Nevertheless, recently, an X-ray diffraction study of the steri-
cally unencumbered silicon complex [(AcN(Me)CH2)2SiCl][Cl]3j
containing a free silyl cation has been reported. The salt [PhGe-
(OCH2CH2NMe2)2][Cl] (1b) considered in the present paper is
the first stable compound containing (i) a cation of the type
[RGeX2]+ (R ) Alk, Ar; X ) substituent bonded to Ge atom
by a heteroatom: Hal, OR, NR2) and (ii) a free germyl cation
Introduction
The ability of heavier main-group elements to accommodate
more than eight electrons in their valence shells, thus forming
so-called hypervalent or hypercoordinate compounds, is well-
established, and the chemistry of such compounds in all its
different facets has been regularly reviewed over the years.
Group 14 elements are in the center of these investigations.1
Compounds containing intramolecularly coordinated ligands
are prominent representatives of this class. We have recently
reported the ability of the â-dimethylaminoethoxy ligand to
stabilize thermodynamically divalent germanium and tin deriva-
tives in the monomeric form under ambient conditions without
involvement of any steric shielding of the E14 (E14 ) group 14
element) atom.2
In this paper, we report on the use of the â-dimethylamino-
ethoxy ligand for the synthesis of a stable compound containing
a pentacoordinate germyl cation, [PhGe(OCH2CH2NMe2)2]+.
The group 14 cations, i.e., silyl, germyl, or stannyl, stabilized
by chelating ligands are of significant current interest.3
Three complementary strategies for the generation of stable
silyl, germyl, or stannyl cations are available: (1) to reduce
the probability of a nucleophilic attack at the cationic center
by the use of counterions and solvents of very low nucleophi-
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* To whom correspondence should be addressed at 28 Vavilov St,
119991, Moscow, Russian Federation. Tel: +7 (495) 135 9343. Fax: +7
† Nesmeyanov Institute of Organoelement Compounds.
‡ Lomonosov Moscow State University.
§ Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis.
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10.1021/om0600745 CCC: $33.50 © 2006 American Chemical Society
Publication on Web 04/11/2006