Synthesis, structural investigation and DFT studies on the intramolecular interaction in group 14 (2-CH3OC6H4)CH2MPh3 (M = Si, Ge, Sn, Pb) organometallic compounds.

In order to test the possible presence of the intramolecular interactions O → M in the group 14 elements and its consequences on the geometry, the 2-methoxybenzyl chlorine was reacted with magnesium and subsequently with the group 14 chlorides, Ph 3 MCl, to produce the organometallic compounds (2-CH 3 OC 6 H 4 )CH 2 MPh 3 [M = Si ( 1 ), Ge ( 2 ) and Pb ( 3 )]. The compounds were fully characterized by elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy, mass spectrometry (FAB + ), and multinuclear ( 1 H, 13 C, 29 Si, 207 Pb) NMR spectroscopy. The compounds 1 and 2 also were investigated by single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis, they are isostructural with a triclinic crystal system and P -1 space group, exhibiting a distorted tetrahedral environment. The possible intramolecular O → M distances in 1 and 2 are 3.810 Å and 3.802 Å respectively, and represent more than the 100% of the sum of the appropriate Van der Waal’s radii. By comparison, in the previously reported tin analogous compound, that is not part of this work, the intramolecular distance O → Sn is ∼80% of the sum of the Van der Waal’s radii. The molecular structures of the four organometallic complexes were fully studied within the Density Functional Theory formalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]