Organic molecules with heavy main-group elements frequently form supramolecular links to electron-rich centres. One particular case of such interactions is halogen bonding. Most studies of this phenomenon have been concerned with either dimers or infinitely extended structures (polymers and lattices) but well-defined cyclic structures remain elusive. Here we present oligomeric aggregates of heterocycles that are linked by chalcogen-centered interactions and behave as genuine macrocyclic species. The molecules of 3-methyl-5-phenyl-1,2-tellurazole 2-oxide assemble a variety of supramolecular aggregates that includes cyclic tetramers and hexamers, as well as a helical polymer. In all these aggregates, the building blocks are connected by Te…O–N bridges. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic experiments demonstrate that the two types of annular aggregates are persistent in solution. These self-assembled structures form coordination complexes with transition-metal ions, act as fullerene receptors and host small molecules in a crystal.

The trisulfur radical anion [S3]˙(-) is well-known from inorganic chemistry textbooks as the blue chromophore in ultramarine blues in which this highly reactive species is trapped in a zeolitic framework. Recent findings have revealed that [S3]˙(-) has a multi-faceted role in a variety of media, including alkali metal-sulfur batteries, aqueous solutions at high temperatures and pressures, and ionic liquids; it has also been used to detect trace amounts of water in organic solvents. This tutorial review illustrates how various physical techniques are used to identify a reactive species in solution and shows how elucidation of electronic structures can be used to explain spectroscopic and structural properties. Examples of the function of [S3]˙(-) in materials science, electrochemistry, analytical chemistry and geochemistry are used to illustrate the widespread influence of this fundamentally important triatomic sulfur species.

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A twelve-membered macrocycle featuring the periodic -O-Te-N- sequence was obtained from the reaction of a β-(N,N-dimethylcarbamoyl-chalcogeno)-alkenyl ketone with hydroxylamine-O-sulfonic acid. A computational study suggests that the ring is assembled by spontaneous catenation of an intermediate isotellurazole-N-oxide.

The reaction of H2C(PCl2)2 with 4 equiv of (t)BuMgCl in tetrahydrofuran (THF) produces 1,4-(CH2)2(P(t)Bu)4, 1, in about 65% yield. This six-membered ring reacts directly with elemental sulfur or selenium in toluene at low temperatures to give the mono- and dichalcogenides 1,4-(CH2)2(P(t)BuE)(P(t)Bu)3 (E = S, 2a, E = Se, 2b) and 1,4-(CH2)2-2,5-(P(t)BuE)2(P(t)Bu)2 (E = S, 3a, E = Se, 3b). X-ray structural determinations showed that 3a and 3b are isostructural in the solid state; the six-membered C2P4 ring exhibits a twist-boat geometry with chalcogen substituents in syn positions in each case. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations for the three possible isomers of disubstitution were performed to elucidate the factors that favor the 2,5-isomer. Thermal isomerism was observed in solutions of 3b or 3a in toluene at 60 and 95 °C, respectively, to give the corresponding 2,6-isomers. With an excess of chalcogen in toluene at reflux, the four-membered rings (H2C)(P(t)BuE)2E (E = S, 4a, E = Se, 4b) were obtained and identified by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy and single crystal X-ray crystallography, which showed the (t)Bu groups in a trans orientation with respect to the CP2E ring. With a large excess of chalcogen, the five-membered rings (H2C)(P(t)BuE)2E2 (E = S, 5a, E = Se, 5b) were also observed; the X-ray structure of 5b revealed a half-envelope conformation for the CP2Se2 ring. The direct reaction of 4a with sulfur in boiling toluene does not produce 5a, whereas 5b is formed slowly and in low yields from 4b and selenium under similar conditions. On the basis of DFT calculations of the relative energies of likely intermediates, chalcogen insertion into the P-P bonds of 3a and 3b to give eight-membered C2P4E2 rings, followed by monomerization, is proposed as a feasible pathway for the formation of the four-membered CP2E heterocycles 4a and 4b.