OPTICAL-PROPERTIES OF NI[T-BU(2)P(O)NR](2) - A PARAMAGNETIC D(8) COMPLEX WITH PLANAR STRUCTURE - REPLY

For a proof whether the chelate angle is the root cause of a triplet l evel being the ground state of Kuchen's planar Ni(II) compounds, Bridg eman and Gerloch must use model parameter values which are derived fro m experiment. Their preliminary calculations employ parameters that ar e in conflict with their own cellular ligand-field (CLF) computations when using a parameter fit which they call 'well defined'. The use of the void-extended CLF scheme for solving the present problem is questi oned, particularly when parameter comparability to other compounds is abandoned - as this model implies.