Five- and six-membered platinacycles derived from phenantryl and anthracenyl imines

The reaction of [Pt2Me4(μ-SMe2)2] with ligands Me2NCH2CH2NCHAr (2a, Ar=9-phenantryl; 2b, Ar=9-anthracenyl) carried out in acetone at room temperature produced the corresponding compounds [PtMe2{9-(Me2NCH2CH2NCH)C14H9}] (3) in which the imines act as bidentate [N,N′] ligands. Refluxing toluene solutions of compounds 3 gave cyclometallated [C,N,N′] compounds [PtMe{9-(Me2NCH2CH2NCH)C14H8}] (4) as a mixture of two isomers containing either a five- or a six-membered metallacycles for 3a and as a single isomer containing a six-membered metallacycle for 3b. The reactions of compounds 4 with acetyl chloride and with methyl iodide produced, respectively, compounds [PtCl{9-(Me2NCH2CH2NCH)C14H8}] (5) and [PtMe2I{9-(Me2NCH2CH2NCH)C14H8}] (6). All compounds were characterised by NMR spectroscopies and analytical data.