Dialkyl dichalcogen cations

Abstract

One electron oxidation of dialkyl diselenides and ditellurides is achieved with NO(+)CF(3)SO(3)(-). According to ab initio calculations the radical cations have a trans stucture. In the solid state they dimerize to rectangular units [R-Te](4)(2+) and [R-Se](4)(2+). The long SeSe and TeTe bond is obviously due to a pi*-pi* interaction.