Octahedral rhenium(III) chalcocyanide cluster anions: Synthesis, structure, and solid state design

The review summarizes data on synthesis and structure of rhenium chalcocyan ide cluster anions [Re6X8(CN)(6)](4-) (X = S, Se, Te) belonging to a new cl ass of inorganic compounds. Two main groups of such compounds are considere d: salts with an island structure and polymer compounds. Various factors go verning the type of structure and the dimensionality of the polymer compoun ds are analyzed including the nature of the chalcogen atom in the cluster a nion, preferable coordination of the transition metal cation, and the size of additional charge-compensating cations. Crystal-chemical approaches to d esign of complex salts based on octahedral rhenium chalcocyanide cluster an ions are formulated.