Stable Localized 1,3-Diradicals Based on Boron and Heavier Main Group Elements

University Of California-Riverside, Riverside CA

Investigators

Abstract

This award by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry program supports research by Guy Bertrand, University of California at Riverside, on the synthesis and characterization of boron-phosphorus compounds with unusual bonding and electronic states. This class of compounds consist of a four-membered ring with alternating boron and phosphorus atoms. By judicious substitution on the boron and phosphorus atoms, the electronic ground state can be "tuned" along a continuum from a sigma-bonded system to singlet or triplet diradicals. The structure, bonding and reactivity of these unusual boron-phosphorus molecules will be studied. Related classes of compounds such as aluminum-phosphorus or aluminum-nitrogen systems will also be explored. Fundamental questions of bonding and electronic structure will be addresssed by this study. Possible long-term applications include polymers with unique magnetic properties. This research will also promote collaborative research and the exchange of undergraduates, graduates and postdoctoral fellows between UC Riverside and several French universities.