Metals and organic molecules are at the opposite sides in chemistry. Thus one may think that chemical bonding models, such as aromaticity, developed in organic chemistry will not be applicable in systems involving metallic elements. Yet in recent years there have been significant advances in extending the aromaticity and antiaromaticity concepts into the realm of metal clusters and alloys. These new developments have shown that aromaticity and antiaromaticity in metal systems have frequently multiple nature, being o-aromatic/antiaromatic and n-aromatic/antiaromatic, which is not found in organic aromatic/antiaromatic molecules.

http://casey.brown.edu/chemistry/research/LSWang/publications/209.pdf

All-Metal Aromaticity and Antiaromaticity

The appearance of ferrocene in the middle of the 20th century has revolutionized organometallic chemistry and is now providing applications in areas as varied and sometimes initially unexpected as optical and redox devices, battery and other materials, sensing, catalysis, including asymmetric and enantioselective catalysis, and medicine. The author presents here a general, although personal, view of ferrocene's chemistry, properties, functions, and applications through a literature survey involving both historical and up-to-date trends and including examples of his group's research in a number of these areas. The review gathers together general features of ferrocene chemistry and representative examples of the salient aspects. Its focus is on ferrocene's basic properties, ferrocene-containing ligands, the ferrocene/ferricinium redox couple, ferrocene mixed-valence and average-valence systems, the ferricinium/ferrocene redox shuttle in catalysis, ligand-exchange reactions, ferrocene-containing polymers, ferrocene-containing structures for cathodic battery and other materials, ferrocenes in supramolecular ensembles, liquid crystals, and nonlinear optical materials, ferrocene-containing stars and their electrostatic effects, ferrocene-containing dendrons, dendrimers, and nanoparticles (NPs) and their application in redox sensing and catalysis, and ferrocenes in nanomedicine.

Why is Ferrocene so Exceptional

https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00086182/document

Phosphaalkene, phospholyl and phosphinine ligands: New tools in coordination chemistry and catalysis

For a long time, Zintl ions of Group 14 and 15 elements were considered to be remarkable species domiciled in solid-state chemistry that have unexpected stoichiometries and fascinating structures, but were of limited relevance The revival of Zintl ions was heralded by the observation that these species, preformed in solid-state Zintl phases, can be extracted from the lattice of the solids and dissolved in appropriate solvents, and thus become available as reactants and building blocks in solution chemistry The recent upsurge of research activity in this fast-growing field has now provided a rich plethora of new compounds, for example by substitution of these Zintl ions with organic groups and organometallic fragments, by oxidative coupling reactions leading to dimers, oligomers, or polymers, or by the inclusion of metal atoms under formation of endohedral cluster species and intermetalloid compounds; some of these species have good prospects in applications in materials science This Review presents the enormous progress that has been made in Zintl ion chemistry with an emphasis on syntheses, properties, structures, and theoretical treatments

Zintl ions, cage compounds, and intermetalloid clusters of Group 14 and Group 15 elements.

An overview about the activation of white phosphorus, P4 with main group elements and compounds is given.

P4 Activation by Main Group Elements and Compounds

[(η‐5‐P5)Fe(η5‐C5Me5)], a Pentaphosphaferrocene Derivative

Die Umsetzung von [Cp*Fe(P5)] (1a) mit [Cr(CO)5(THF)] bzw. [Cp(CO)2Mn(THF)] ergibt [Cp*Fe(P5){Cr(CO)5}2] (2) sowie [HCp*Fe(P5){Mn(CO)2Cp}n] (4a–d; 1–4; Cp* = η5-C5Me5). Aus 1 und [CpFe(C6H6)]PF6 lassen sich photochemisch die kationischen 30-VE-Tripeldeckerkomplexe [CpFe(μ, η5-P5)Fe(C5Me4R)]PF6 (3a: R = CH3; 3b: R = C2H5; Cp = η5-C5H5) aufbauen. Zusatzlich zu den NMR-spektroskopischen Studien wurden von 2 und 3b Kristallstrukturanalysen angefertigt.



Pentaphospaferrocenes as Complex Ligands



The interaction of [Cp*Fe(P5)] (1a) with [Cr(CO)5(thf)] and [Cp(CO)2Mn(thf)], respectively, affords [Cp*Fe(P5){Cr(CO)5}2] (2) as well as [Cp*Fe(P5){Mn(CO)2Cp}n] (4a–d; n = 1–4; Cp* = η5-C5Me5). Irradiation of 1 and [CpFe(C6H6)]PF6 gives the cationic 30-VE triple-decker complexes [CpFe(μ, η5-P5)Fe(C5Me4R)]PF6 (3a: R = CH3; 3b: R = C2H5; Cp = η5-C5H5). In addition to the NMR studies 2 and 3b have been characterized by X-ray structure analyses.

Thomas Brück

Papers

[(η‐5‐P5)Fe(η5‐C5Me5)], a Pentaphosphaferrocene Derivative

Pentaphosphaferrocene als Komplexliganden

[(η5‐P5)Fe(η5‐C5Me5)], ein Pentaphosphaferrocen‐Derivat