Copper and Silver Complexes of a Redox-Active Diphosphine-Diboraanthracene Ligand

Redox-active ligands and Z-type acceptor ligands have emerged as promising strategies for promoting multielectron redox chemistry at transition-metal centers. Herein, we report the synthesis and characterization of copper and silver complexes of a diphosphine ligand featuring a diboraanthracene core (B2P2, 9,10-bis(2-(diisopropylphosphino)phenyl)-9,10-dihydroboranthrene) that is capable of serving as both a redox reservoir and a Z-type ligand. Metalation of B2P2 with CuX (X = Cl, Br, I) results in the formation of bimetallic complexes of the formula (B2P2)Cu2X2 of two different structure types, depending on the halide. The Cu(I) cation [Cu(B2P2)]+ can be accessed by direct metalation of B2P2 with [Cu(CH3CN)4][PF6] or by halide abstraction with Na[BArF4] (ArF = 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl) with concomitant expulsion of CuX from the bimetallic Cu2X2 complexes. Metalation of B2P2 with AgCl results in the formation of the zwitterion Ag(B2P2)Cl featuring a diphosphine Ag cation tethered to a chloroborate anion. Metathesis of chloride for the noncoordinating [BArF4]− affords the cation [Ag(B2P2)]+. The cations [Cu(B2P2)]+ and [Ag(B2P2)]+ exhibit quasireversible reduction events at ∼ −1.6 V versus the ferrocene/ferrocenium redox couple, and the thermally sensitive radicals that result from their reduction, Cu(B2P2) and Ag(B2P2), were characterized by EPR spectroscopy and, in the case of the latter, single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Electronic structure calculations suggest these neutral radicals are best described as zwitterions with reduction centered at the diboraanthracene core.