Understanding the Remarkable Stability of Well-defined Dinuclear Copper(I) Carbene Complexes

Roel Bienenmann; Marianne de Vries; Martin Lutz; Daniel Broere

doi:10.1002/chem.202400283

Understanding the Remarkable Stability of Well-defined Dinuclear Copper(I) Carbene Complexes

Chemistry. 2024 Apr 17:e202400283. doi: 10.1002/chem.202400283. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Roel Bienenmann¹, Marianne de Vries², Martin Lutz³, Daniel Broere⁴

Affiliations

¹ Utrecht University, Institute for Sustainable and Circular chemistry, NETHERLANDS.
² Utrecht University, Institute for Sustainable and Circular Chemistry, NETHERLANDS.
³ Utrecht University, Bijvoet Centre for Biomolecular Research, NETHERLANDS.
⁴ Universiteit Utrecht Faculteit Betawetenschappen, Chemistry, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG, Utrecht, NETHERLANDS.

PMID: 38630913
DOI: 10.1002/chem.202400283

Abstract

The synthesis of a well-defined dicopper carbene complex supported by the PNNP (2,7-bis(di-tert-butylphosphaneyl)methyl-1,8-naphthyridine) expanded pincer ligand is reported. This carbene complex is remarkably stable, even in the presence of air and water. The reactivity of this complex was explored towards typical carbene transfer substrates and its electronic structure was investigated. Using a combination of experiments and DFT calculations, the principles that underly the stability of dinuclear carbene complexes are probed.

Keywords: Bimetallic; Carbene; Dicopper; Expanded pincer.