Wolfram Sander

Dimerization of formic acid--an example of a "noncovalent" reaction mechanism

The pulse deposition technique allows selectively the isolation of monomeric or dimeric formic acid in argon matrices at 7 K. Warming of matrices containing the monomer M from 7 K to 40 K results in the decrease of M and formation of a dimer B. This dimer is also labile, and further warming finally produces a second dimer A. By comparison with density functional theory (DFT) calculations and gas phase IR spectra taken from the literature, the latter dimer A was identified as the C2h-symmetrical cyclic dimer. The unstable dimer B was identified as the acyclic Cs-symmetrical dimer. An activation energy of 2.3 kcal mol(-1) was calculated for the B --> A rearrangement at the B3LYP/ 6-311 ++ G(d,p) level of theory, which is in qualitative agreement with the experimental finding of a slow thermal reaction under the conditions of matrix isolation.

Carbonylation reactions of intramolecular vicinal frustrated phosphane/borane Lewis pairs.

The intramolecular frustrated Lewis pair (FLP) Mes2PCH2CH2B(C6F5)2 4 adds cooperatively to carbon monoxide to form the five-membered heterocyclic carbonyl compound 5. The intramolecular FLP 7 contains an exo-3-B(C6F5)2 Lewis acid and an endo-2-PMes2 Lewis base functionality coordinated at the norbornane framework. This noninteracting FLP adds carbon monoxide in solution at -35 °C cooperatively to yield a five-membered heterocyclic FLP-carbonyl compound 8. In contrast, FLP 7 is carbonylated in a CO-doped argon matrix at 25 K to selectively form a borane carbonyl 9 without involvement of the adjacent phosphanyl moiety. The free FLP 7 was generated in the gas phase from its FLPH2 product 10. A DFT study has shown that the phosphonium hydrido borate zwitterion 10 is formed exergonically in solution but tends to lose H2 when brought into the gas phase.

Reactions of Difluorovinylidene—A Super‐Electrophilic Carbene

Even xenon reacts with difluorovinylidene at cryogenic temperatures to form a charge-transfer complex (see picture). Several other reactions, including the addition of N2 or CO, the addition to π systems and the insertion into covalent bonds have been investigated by means of matrix isolation spectroscopy and ab initio calculations.

A CCSD(T) and DFT investigation of m-benzyne and 4-hydroxy-m-benzyne

Abstract 4-Hydroxy- m -benzyne ( 2a ), which is interesting in connection with research on enediyne antitumor drugs, has been identified by comparing the measured infrared spectrum with vibrational spectra calculated at the CCSD(T)/6–31G(d,p) and B3LYP/6–31G(d,p) levels of theory. Although the vibrational spectra calph bands that make an identification of 2a in the matrix at low temperatures possible. Molecule 2a possesses the structure of a σ-biradical. Its isomer bicyclo[3.1.0]hexatriene is not stable, which is parallel to the result obtained for the parent molecule m -benzyne ( 1 ). The biradical character of 2a is somewhat lower than that of 1 .

Matrix Isolation and Electronic Structure of Di- and Tridehydrobenzenes

Within the past four decades, matrix isolation spectroscopy has emerged as the method of choice for obtaining direct structural information on benzynes and related dehydroaromatics. In combination with quantum chemical computations, detailed insight into the structure and reactivity of di-, tri-, and tetradehydrobenzenes has been obtained. This Review focuses on rather recent developments in aryne chemistry with a special emphasis on the matrix isolation of tridehydrobenzenes and related systems.

Matrix Isolation and EPR Spectroscopy of Septet 3,5-Difluoropyridyl-2,4,6-trinitrene

Septet 3,5-difluoropyridyl-2,4,6-trinitrene along with quintet 2-azido-3,5-difluoropyridyl-4,6-dinitrene, quintet 4-azido-3,5-difluoropyridyl-2,6-dinitrene, triplet 2,6-diazido-3,5-difluoropyridyl-4-nitrene, and triplet 2,4-diazido-3,5-difluoropyridyl-6-nitrene have been obtained by photolysis of 2,4,6-triazido-3,5-difluoropyridine in solid argon at 4 K. The electronic and magnetic properties of the matrix-isolated nitrenes were studied using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy in combination with density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The fine-structure parameters of the nitrenes were determined with high accuracy from computer spectral simulations. All signals in the EPR spectra of the nitrenes randomly oriented in the solid phase were unambiguously assigned on the basis of eigenfield calculations of the Zeeman energy levels and angular dependencies of resonance fields from the direction of the applied magnetic field.

Switching the Spin State of Diphenylcarbene via Halogen Bonding.

The interactions between diphenylcarbene DPC and the halogen bond donors CF3I and CF3Br were investigated using matrix isolation spectroscopy (IR, UV-vis, and EPR) in combination with QM and QM/MM calculations. Both halogen bond donors CF3X form very strong complexes with the singlet state of DPC, but only weakly interact with triplet DPC. This results in a switching of the spin state of DPC, the singlet complexes becoming more stable than the triplet complexes. CF3I forms a second complex (type II) with DPC that is thermodynamically slightly more stable. Calculations predict that in this second complex the DPC···I distance is shorter than the F3C···I distance, whereas in the first (type I) complex the DPC···I distance is, as expected, longer. CF3Br only forms the type I complex. Upon irradiation I or Br, respectively, are transferred to the DPC carbene center and radical pairs are formed. Finally, on annealing, the formal C-X insertion product of DPC is observed. Thus, halogen bonding is a powerful new principle to control the spin state of reactive carbenes.

Matrix isolation, spectroscopic characterization, and photoisomerization of m-xylylene.

A new efficient synthesis of m-xylylene 1 is reported. The diradical 1 was trapped in argon matrices at 10 K and characterized by IR, UV-vis, and EPR spectroscopy. The syntheses reported before only allowed generation of 1 in organic glasses, and the spectroscopic identification was limited to fluorescence and EPR spectroscopy. Diradical 1 proved to be highly photolabile, and irradiation results in the formation of three isomeric hydrocarbons 7, 9, and 11 which could be identified by comparison of their IR spectra with the results of DFT calculations.

Matrix Isolation and Spectroscopic Characterization of Perfluorinated ortho- and meta-Benzyne

The matrix isolation and spectroscopic characterization of two C6F4 isomers, the perfluorinated o-benzyne 4 and the m-benzyne 5, is reported. UV photolysis of tetrafluorophthalic anhydride 6 in solid argon at 10 K results in the formation of CO, CO2, and 1,2-didehydro-3,4,5,6-tetrafluorobenzene (4) in a clean reaction. On subsequent 350 nm irradiation 4 is carbonylated to give the cyclopropenone 7. 1,3-Didehydro-2,4,5,6-tetrafluorobenzene (5) was synthesized by UV irradiation of 1,3-diiodo-2,4,5,6-tetrafluorobenzene (8) via 2,3,4,6-tetrafluoro-5-iodophenylradical 9. Photolysis of 8 in solid neon at 3 K produces good yields of both radical 9 and benzyne 5, while in argon at 10 K no reaction is observed. Thus, the photochemistry in neon at extremely low temperature markedly differs from the photochemistry in argon. The formation of 5 from 8 via 9 is reversible, and annealing the neon matrix at 8 K leads back to the starting material 8. The benzynes 4 and 5 and the radical 9 were characterized by comparison of their matrix IR spectra with density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

2,3,5,6-Tetrafluorophenylnitren-4-yl: electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopic characterization of a quartet-ground-state nitreno radical.

2,3,5,6-Tetrafluorophenylnitren-4-yl (5) was synthesized in argon at 4 K via the photolysis of 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-4-iodo-phenyl azide (6). Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy allows us to observe triradical 5 in its quartet state with the zero-field splitting (ZFS) parameters |D/hc| = 0.285 and |E/hc| = 0.043 cm-1. The quartet ground state of 5 is in accordance with our previous infrared (IR) spectroscopic investigation, in which the high-spin quartet state, but no low-spin doublet state, of 5 was observed in solid argon at 4 K [Wenk, H. H.; Sander, W. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2002, 41, 2742-2745]. Because annealing of the matrix at temperatures of >10 K results in the rapid recombination of the highly reactive species 5 with I atoms produced during the photolysis of 6, the Curie-Weiss behavior could not be investigated. However, the absence of low-spin states in the IR investigations, as well as the results of ab initio and density functional theory (DFT) calculations, strongly suggest that 5 has a robust quartet ground state that is best-described as an unprecedented sigma,sigma,pi-triradical. The ZFS of 5 has been successfully reproduced by DFT calculations, which furthermore provide qualitative insight into the origin of the observed EPR parameters.