From a Stable Silylene to a Mixed‐Valent Disiloxane and an Isolable Silaformamide–Borane Complex with Considerable Silicon–Oxygen Double‐Bond Character

Abstract

Kipping's dream has (almost) become reality with the first isolable silanone-like complex 2, prepared by borane-assisted addition of water to the stable silylene 1. The short Si–O bond in 2 points to considerable SiO character. In contrast, treatment of 1 with water in the absence of a borane leads to the crystalline siloxy silylene 3, an unprecedented mixed-valent disiloxane with di- and tetravalent silicon atoms (R=2,6-iPr2C6H3).