Synthesis, Structure, and Bonding of d³ Molybdenum–Oxo Complexes

Abstract

Reduction of d2 metal–oxo ions of the form [MO(PP)2Cl]+ (M=Mo, W; PP=chelating diphosphine) produces d3 MO(PP)2Cl complexes, which include the first isolated examples in group 6. The stability and reactivity of the MO(PP)2Cl compounds are found to depend upon the steric bulk of the phosphine ligands: derivatives with bulky phosphines that shield the oxo ligand are stable enough to be isolated, whereas those with phosphines that leave the oxo ligand exposed are more reactive and observed transiently. Magnetic measurements and DFT calculations on MoO(dppe)2Cl indicate the d3 compounds are low spin with a 2[(dxy)2(π*(MoO))1] configuration. X‐ray crystallographic and vibrational‐spectroscopic studies on d2 and d3 [MoO(dppe)2Cl]0/+ establish that the d3 compound possesses a reduced M−O bond order and significantly longer Mo−O bond, accounting for its greater reactivity. These results indicate that the oxo‐centered reactivity of d3 complexes may be controlled through ligand variation.