OCBBCO:  A Neutral Molecule with Some Boron−Boron Triple Bond Character

Abstract

Molecules that contain boron-boron multiple bonds are extremely rare due to the electron-deficient nature of boron. Here we report experimental and theoretical evidence of a neutral OCBBCO molecule with some boron-boron triple bond character. The molecule was produced and unambiguously characterized by matrix isolation infrared spectroscopy. Quantum chemical calculations indicate that the molecule has a linear singlet ground state with a very short boron-boron bond length.