The First Pentahaptofullerene Metal Complexes

Abstract

Cyclopentadienyl metal complexes have played important roles in chemistry owing to their unique structures and functional activities. Here we report the synthesis and characterization of an entirely new class of cyclopentadienyl (Cp) metal complexes ({eta}{sup 5}-C{sub 60}Ph{sub 5})MLn (MLn = Li, K, Tl, and Cu.PEt{sub 3}). In these molecules, the five Cp carbons represent one pentagon of C{sub 60}, isolated from the remaining 50 sp{sup 2} carbon atoms by five surrounding sp{sup 3} carbon atoms each bearing a phenyl group. The X-ray crystal structure analysis of the thallium complex Tl({eta}{sup 5}-C{sub 60}Ph{sub 5}).2.5THF revealed its unique and esthetically pleasing C{sub 5} symmetrical molecular structure with the phenyl groups forming a chiral propeller array. The thallium atom is deeply buried in the cavity created by the phenyl groups, bonding to the five Cp carbons ({eta}{sup 5}-coordination) with an averaged Tl-C distance of 2.87 A. The key finding that we made in this research was a remarkable 5-fold addition of an organocopper reagent to C{sub 60}, which stands in contrast to the monoaddition reaction of Grignard or organolithium reagents. 10 refs., 1 fig.