No abstract

The recently reported metalation/transmetalation route for the synthesis of CCC-bis­(NHC) pincer ligand supported transition-metal complexes was extended to Pt. 2-(1,3-Bis­(N-butylimidazol-2-ylidene)­phenylene)­(chloro)­platinum­(II) (1) and its bromo analogue 2 were synthesized and characterized. X-ray crystal structure determinations revealed complexes 1 and 2 to have distorted-square-planar configurations around the metal. Photophysical and thermal properties of these complexes are reported, and their extended photostability in air is discussed and contrasted. Density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) computations of the ground state and various low-lying excited states have revealed admixing of Pt 5d orbitals and the ligand π* orbitals for both the ground state and the low-lying excited states of complex 1, indicating the low-lying states to be a mixture of metal-to-ligand charge-transfer and ligand-centered transition (MLCT-LC). Somewhat surprisingly, the computed gas-phase geometry of the excited state of complex 1 had a significant distortion, mostly about the Caryl–Pt–Cl angle. These complexes were congeners of materials for organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).

The scope of CCC-NHC pincer complex synthetic methodology by metalation/transmetalation has been extended to Ir. Structural characterization revealed that it is isomorphous with the Rh complex. Both Rh and Ir complexes are efficient catalysts for the hydroamination/cyclization of secondary amines in the presence of air and/or water.

A series of Pd(II) complexes containing chiral diamine ligands were investigated as asymmetric catalysts for the rearrangement of allylic imidates to allyl amides. The best catalysts were cations obtained by dechlorination of dichloro[(S)-2-(isoindolinylmethyl)-N-methylpyrrolidine]palladium(II) (17) with silver salts in CH2Cl2. Catalyst 18 was studied thoroughly and shown by 1H NMR and X-ray crystallography analysis to be a C 1 symmetric dimer (Figure ). A series of related catalysts 22−27 having various counterions and anionic ligands were also prepared and studied as asymmetric catalysts for the rearrangement of allylic N-(4-trifluorophenyl)benzimidate 29 to allylic benzamide 30 (eq 4). Rearrangement of 29 in CH2Cl2 (48 h at 40 °C) in the presence of 5 mol % of 18 affords (−)-30 in 69% yield and 55% ee. Enantioselection is increased to 60% when an isomerically pure sample of 18 is employed. Chemical correlation of allylic benzamide 30 with (R)-norvaline established that (−)-30 has the R absolute configuration (Scheme ). A cyclization-induced rearrangement mechanism (Scheme ) requires that in the major pathway the imidate nitrogen attacks the re face of the olefin with Pd coordinated to the si face. These studies constitute the first report of asymmetric catalysis of the rearrangement of allylic imidates to allylic amides. However, significant hurdles remain to be overcome before the enantioselective rearrangement of allylic imidates becomes a practical route to enantioenriched nitrogen compounds.