Issue title: Papers presented at the ‘Early Main Group Metal Chemistry’ symposium as part of the Pacifichem 2005 conference. Honolulu, Hawaii, December 15th- 20th, 2005.
Affiliations: Centro de Investigaciones Químicas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, Col. Chamilpa, Cuernavaca, Morelos 62209, México
Abstract: Organogallium(III) thioetherbisphenolate complexes of general formulae SmdiolGaMe-THF (1), StdiolGaMe-THF (2), SmdiolGaMe (3) and StdiolGaMe (4) (Smdiol = 2,2′-thiobis(4,6-dimethylphenolate); Stdiol = 2,2′-thiobis(4,6-diterbuthylphenolate)), were synthesised by methane elimination reactions from GaMe3 and the diol proligands SmdiolH2 and StdiolH2. The molecular structure of 1 is monomeric and shows the Ga centre adopting a trigonal bipyramidal structure with one of the apical positions occupied by the oxygen atom of a coordinated THF molecule. While the solution spectroscopic data of 4 is in support of a monomeric, probably tetrahedral, species its solid state structure shows a polymeric array built upon intermolecular sulphur-to-gallium interactions resulting in a distorted trigonal bipyramid. The Smdiol derivatives 1 and 3 show modest catalytic activities in Diels-Alder cycloaddition reactions of methacrolein and cyclopentadiene. In addition, StdiolGaH (7) is conveniently synthesized from reaction of StdiolGaCl and tBuLi at room temperature. Compound 7 readily hydrolyses in the presence of trace amounts of water leading to StdiolGa(OH) (8) whose solid state structure was determined.
