Abstract:
Bis(alpha-iminopyridine) L has been employed as the redox non-innocent Schiff-base ligand to coordinate with cationic antimony(III) and bismuth(III) centers. Mono- and di- cationic compounds: [LSbCl2][CF3SO3] 1, [LBiCl2][CF3SO3] 2, [LSbCl2]2[Sb2Cl8] 3, [LBiCl2]2[Bi2Cl8] 4, [LSbCl][CF3SO3]2 5, [LBiCl][CF3SO3]2 6 have been isolated and characterized using single crystal X-ray crystallography in the solid-state and solution-state NMR studies. These compounds have been prepared from PnCl3 (Pn=Sb, Bi) and chloride abstracting agent such as Me3SiCF3SO3 or AgCF3SO3 in the presence of L. The Bi tri-cationic species forms heteroleptic compound 7, being coordinated by two types of Schiff-base donors L and L′. The latter has been in situ generated by the cleavage of one of the two imines present in L.