Bis(amidinate) Complexes of Silicon and Germanium

Abstract

The synthesis of novel bis(amidinate) silicon and germanium complexes is described. The reaction of two equiv. of [MeC(NiPr)2]Li · THF (1) with SiCl4, GeCl4 or GeCl2·dioxane affords [MeC(NiPr)2]2SiCl2 (2), [MeC(NiPr)2]2GeCl2 (3) and [MeC(NiPr)2]2Ge (4), respectively. The complexes 2 and 4 have been structurally characterized. The crystallographic results confirm a bidentate coordination of the amidinate ligands at the Si/Ge center, as indicated by spectroscopic studies.