This award in the Inorganic, Bioinorganic, and Organometallic Program provides continued support to Dr. Donald H. Berry of the University of Pennsylvania for study of transition metal complexes containing unsaturated silicon ligands. The research is fundamental in nature, but could have implications for understanding silane redistribution and dehydrogenative polymerization and hence for electronic or ceramic materials development. Early and late transition metals will be complexed with ligands such as silenes, disilenes, disilabenzenes, disilynes, silanimines, and silanones. Reaction mechanisms will be explored, especially in cases involving Si-Si or M-Si bond cleavage and silylene extrusion. In some compounds proposed for synthesis, observation of migration of a hydride group to a metal may be possible. Photoelectron spectroscopy and electrochemical methods will be used to characterize the electronic structure of new species.
