The coordination behaviour of large natural bite angle diphosphine ligands towards methyl and 4-cyanophenylpalladium(ii) complexes

The structures of neutral and ionic 4-cyanophenylpalladium(ii) and methylpalladium(ii) complexes containing bidentate phosphine ligands were investigated in solution and in the solid state. Diphosphine ligands with a xanthene and a ferrocene backbone were used. New bis(dialkylphosphino) substituted Xantphos ligands were synthesised. ¹H NMR and ³¹P NMR spectroscopy, conductivity measurements, UV-Vis spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography were used to elucidate the structures of the complexes. Subtle changes of the phosphine ligands govern the coordination mode of the ligand. A variety of bidentate cis-, and trans-coordination and terdentate P–O–P, P–S–P and P–Fe–P coordination modes of the ligands were observed.