Phosphane Ligands, 6 The Remarkable Tridentate Coordination of 4,6‐Bis(diphenylphosphanyl)‐dibenzofuran in Ruthenium(II) Complexes

Abstract

Abstract4,6‐Bis(diphenylphosphanyl)dibenzofuran (1), despite its large P…P distance of 5.74 Å and its bite angle of ca. 131° was found to be Capable of tridentate coordination to ruthenium (II) chloride. Single crystal X‐ray structure analyses of the new ruthenium (II) complexes 3,4 and 5 revealed that the ligand 1 coordinates to a single ruthenium atom with both phosphorus centers and the dibenzofuran oxygen atom. The remarkable ligand deformation resulting from the coordination is evident from the decrease of the P…P distance by 1 Å to 4.75 Å and the increase of the bite angle (P–Ru–P) by 25° to 155°−157. The unprecedented in‐plane coordination of the dibenzofuran oxygen atom to ruthenium is interesting in view of the hybridisation of the oxygen.