title: A stable two-coordinate acyclic silylene.
abstract: Simple two-coordinate acyclic silylenes, SiR(2), have hitherto been identified only as transient intermediates or thermally labile species. By making use of the strong σ-donor properties and high steric loading of the B(NDippCH)(2) substituent (Dipp = 2,6-(i)Pr(2)C(6)H(3)), an isolable monomeric species, Si{B(NDippCH)(2)}{N(SiMe(3))Dipp}, can be synthesized which is stable in the solid state up to 130 °C. This silylene species undergoes facile oxidative addition reactions with dihydrogen (at sub-ambient temperatures) and with alkyl C-H bonds, consistent with a low singlet-triplet gap (103.9 kJ mol(-1)), thus demonstrating fundamental modes of reactivity more characteristic of transition metal systems.
authors.affiliation: Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QR, UK.
authors.forename: Andrey V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Protchenko
authors.forename: Krishna Hassomal
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Birjkumar
authors.forename: Deepak
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dange
authors.forename: Andrew D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.forename: Dragoslav
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vidovic
authors.forename: Cameron
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Nikolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kaltsoyannis
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mountford
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aldridge