Rhodium(I) Pincer Complexes of Nitrous Oxide

The synthesis of two well-defined rhodium(I) complexes of nitrous oxide (N₂ O) is reported. These normally elusive adducts are stable in the solid state and persist in solution at ambient temperature, enabling comprehensive structural interrogation by ¹⁵ N NMR and IR spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. These methods evidence coordination of N₂ O through the terminal nitrogen atom in a linear fashion and are supplemented by a computational energy decomposition analysis, which provides further insights into the nature of the Rh-N₂ O interaction.