The reactions of 4,4-bis(trifluoromethyl)-substituted hetero-1,3-dienes with Ni(cod)2 and
Ni(PMe3)2(cod) afford stable coordination compounds containing a trigonal planar Ni(0)
center. The substitution of co-ligands by tert-butylisonitrile leads to five-membered nickelacycles by an unprecedented oxidative [4+1] cycloaddition of the hetero-1,3-diene to Ni(0)
under formation of new Ni−C and Ni−O or Ni−N bonds. The nature of the resulting
nickelacycloheteropentene derivatives decisively depends on the electronic and steric nature
of the hetero-1,3-dienes. All compounds have been characterized by NMR, IR, or mass
spectroscopy. X-ray crystal structure determinations are reported for four typical examples.