Solution decomposition of platinum(II) fluoride cations;: single-crystal structure of [Pt(PPh3)2(C6H4PPh2)][SbF6]•CD2Cl2

An extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) investigation of the metal co-ordination geometry in the cations [PtF(PR3)(3)](+) (R = Et or Ph) indicates that the Pt-F bond lengths are identical and only slightly longer than those typical for low-valent metal fluoride complexes. The solution decomposition of the complexes, [PtF(PPh3)(3)][X] (X = HF2, BF4 or SbF6), have been studied in both wet and dry chlorinated solvents and the only reactions observed have been due to the presence of water, producing, initially, [Pt(OH)(PPh3)(3)](+) and subsequently the ortho-metallated products [Pt(PPh3)(3)(C6H4PPh2)][X], which have been characterised by mass spectrometry, multinuclear NMR spectroscopy and, when X = SbF6, by single-crystal X-ray crystallography.