Silabenzene and disilabenzene complexes of ruthenium

The syntheses of sila- and disilabenzene complexes of "Cp*Ru'' (Cps = C5Me5 ) are described. Li[C5H5SiH(tBu)] reacted with [Cp*RuCl](4) to give the neu tral silacyclohexadienyl complex Cp*Ru [eta (5)-C5H5SiH(tBu)] (2), characte rized by NMR spectroscopy. Reaction of 2 with the Lewis acid B(C6F5)(3) gav e the product of Si-H abstraction, [Cp*Ru(eta (6)-(C5H5SiBu)-Bu-t)] [BH(C6F 5)(3)] (3). Complex 3 represents the first example of an isolated silabenze ne complex. The characterization of 3 follows from H-1, C-13, Si-29, (19)Ft and B-11 NMR and IR spectroscopies. Finally, trans-1,4-dihydrohexamethyl-1 ,4-disilacyclohexa-2,5-diene reacted with Cp'(PMe3)(2)-RuCH2SiMe3 (Cp' = C5 Me4Et) to give Cp'(PMe3)RuH(eta (2)-hexamethyl-1,4-disilabenzene) (4), whos e structure (by X-ray crystallography) may be described as a metallodisilan orbornadiene.