Synthesis and characterization of a polyferrocenyldistannane

Abstract

The distannyl-bridged poly bis(dimethylstannyl)ferrocene, 5, was synthesized through either the metal-catalyzed intermolecular dehydrogenative condensation of the bis(dimethylstannyl)ferrocene, 6, or the ring-opening polymerization of the distannane-bridged [2]ferrocenophane, 7. Both polymerization strategies yielded compounds displaying NMR (1H, 13C, 119Sn) evidence for a distannane bridged polymer. A modest moderate molecular weight (GPC; Mw = 9.5 × 104 Da, PDI = 1.76) was found for polymer 5 prepared by dehydrogenative condensation. Polymer 5 displayed electronic communication (≈ 0.2 V) between neighbouring iron centers, similar to those reported for monobridged ferrocenyl stannane polymers. Polymer 5 was further characterized by UV–vis spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and modeled with the related distannyl-8 and tristannyl-9 bisferrocenes using DFT at the SDD level of theory.