Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol.131, No.37, 13222-13222, 2009
pi-Conjugated Phosphasilenes Stabilized by Fused-Ring Bulky Groups
pi-Conjugated phosphasilenes with a variety of aryl substituents on the silicon atom have been synthesized by the use of a 1,1,3,3,5,5,7,7-octaethyl-s-hydrindacen-4-yl (Eind) group. X-ray structural analysis shows the highly coplanar pi-framework stabilized by the perpendicularly fixed Eind groups. The strong pi-pi* absorptions have been observed, demonstrating the extension of pi-conjugation over the skeleton. The DFT calculations indicate that the LUMO involves the substantial contribution of the 3p pi*(Si- P)-2p(pi)*(carbon pi-electron system) conjugation. The electrochemical properties of the phosphasilens are also presented.