Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Preparation and Reactivity of a Triphosphenium Bromide Salt: A Convenient and Stable Source of Phosphorus(I)
Published on: November 22, 2016
Pseudotetrahedral manganese complexes supported by the anionic tris(phosphino)borate ligand [PhBP(iPr)3]
1Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Arnold and Mabel Beckman Laboratories of Chemical Synthesis, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA.
Abstract:
This paper presents aspects of the coordination chemistry of mono- and divalent manganese complexes supported by the anionic tris(phosphino)borate ligand, [PhBP(i)(Pr)3] (where [PhBP(i)(Pr)3] = [PhB(CH(2)P(i)Pr2)3]-). The Mn(II) halide complexes, [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]MnCl (1) and [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]MnI (2), have been characterized by X-ray diffraction, SQUID magnetometry, and EPR spectroscopy. Compound 2 serves as a precursor to a series of Mn azide, alkyl, and amide species: [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(N3) (3), [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(CH2Ph) (4), [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(Me) (5), [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(NH(2,6-(i)Pr2-C6H3)) (6), [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(dbabh) (7), and [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(1-Ph(isoindolate)) (8). The complexes 2-8 feature a divalent-metal center and are pseudotetrahedral. They collectively represent an uncommon structural motif for low-coordinate, polyphosphine-supported Mn complexes. Two Mn(I) species have also been prepared. These include the Tl-Mn adduct [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Tl-MnBr(CO)4 (9) and the octahedral complex [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]Mn(CN(t)Bu)3 (10). Some of our initial synthetic efforts to generate [PhBP(i)(Pr)3]MnN(x) species are briefly described, as are DFT studies that probe the electronic viability of these types of multiply bonded target structures.
Related Concept Videos
Valence Bond Theory
Metal-Ligand Bonds
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
Coordination Number and Geometry
Colors and Magnetism
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human eye.
Predicting Molecular Geometry
Crystal Field Theory - Tetrahedral and Square Planar Complexes
Crystal field theory (CFT) is applicable to molecules in geometries other than octahedral. In octahedral complexes, the lobes of the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals point directly at the ligands. For tetrahedral complexes, the d orbitals remain in place, but with only four ligands located between the axes. None of the orbitals points directly at the tetrahedral ligands. However, the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals (along the Cartesian axes) overlap with the ligands less than the dxy,...

