Stabilization of Imidosamarium(III) Cubane by Amidinates

Abstract

An imidosamarium(III) cubane has been prepared from the reductive cleavage of azobenzene by a divalent samarium bis(amidinate) complex, indicating that the "spectrator" bis(amidinate) and the resulting imido ligands help to stabilize the cubane framework. The cubane-type imido cluster is a novel unit in lanthanide chemistry.