Unprecedented Borane, Diborane(3), Diborene, and Borylene Ligands via Pt-Mediated Borane Dehydrogenation

Reactions of an aryldihydroborane with a Pt(0) complex lead to a range of novel products, including complexes with bridging diborene and diborane(3) ligands and a complex with both borylene and borane (M → B) ligands. The products imply varying degrees of dehydrogenation of the boron centers with concomitant formation of boron-boron bonds, which in one case is later broken. These reactions show that although the dehydrocoupling of dihydroboranes is not a straightforward process in this case, the reactions are capable of connecting boron atoms in unusual ways, leading to unprecedented bonding motifs.