Synthesis and versatile reactivity of scandium phosphinophosphinidene complexes

• Published in: Nature communications 2020-06, Vol.11 (1), p.2916-2916, Article 2916
• Main Authors: Feng, Bin, Xiang, Li, McCabe, Karl N., Maron, Laurent, Leng, Xuebing, Chen, Yaofeng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 119/118; 140/131; 639/638/263; 639/638/563; 639/638/911; Actinides; Alkylidene; Chemical Physics; Chemists; Coordination compounds; Humanities and Social Sciences; Metals; multidisciplinary; Periodic table; Physics; Rare earth elements; Reactivity; Scandium; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Subgroups; Synthesis; Transition metals
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-16773-w

M=E/M≡E multiple bonds (M = transition metal, E = main group element) are of significant fundamental scientific importance and have widespread applications. Expanding the ranges of M and E represents grand challenges for synthetic chemists and will bring new horizons for the chemistry. There have been reports of M=E/M≡E multiple bonds for the majority of the transition metals, and even some actinide metals. In stark contrast, as the largest subgroup in the periodic table, rare-earth metals (Ln) were scarcely involved in Ln=E/Ln≡E multiple bonds. Until recently, there were a few examples of rare-earth monometallic alkylidene, imido and oxo complexes, featuring Ln=C/N/O bonds. What are in absence are rare-earth monometallic phosphinidene complexes with Ln=P bonds. Herein, we report synthesis and structure of rare-earth monometallic phosphinidene complexes, namely scandium phosphinophosphinidene complexes. Reactivity of scandium phosphinophosphinidene complexes is also mapped out, and appears to be easily tuned by the supporting ligand. Rare-earth monometallic phosphinidene complexes have been elusive synthetic targets. Here, the authors describe the synthesis and tunable reactivity of two scandium phosphinophosphinidene complexes containing very unusual Sc-P multiple bonds.