Dichlorostannylene complexes of group 10 metals, a unique bonding mode stabilized by bridging 2-pyridyldiphenylphosphine ligands

The reaction of tin dichloride with catalytically-relevant group 10 metal precursors [M(Cl)(X)(2-PyPPh2)2] (M = Ni, Pd, Pt; 2-PyPPh2 = 2-pyridyldiphenylphosphine; X = Cl, Me) provides easy access to unprecedented cationic dichlorostannylene complexes [M(X)(2-PyPPh2)2(SnCl2)]+ where the M–Sn bond is bridged by two head-to-head coordinated 2-PyPPh2 ligands. The formation of such species instead of the classical neutral trichlorostannyl derivatives [M(X)(SnCl3)(2-PyPPh2)2] offers a new insight on the specific effect of the SnCl2 cocatalyst in group 10 metal catalyzed transformations.