X-Ray Crystal Structure of a Monomeric Tris(Arsino)Gallane, ((Me3Si)2As) 3Ga

Early effects in organogallium-arsenic synthetic chemistry centered on the utilization of alkane elimination reactions, as evidenced by the work of Coates and co-workers in the 1960. Through their efforts, they were able to isolate monoarsino gallanes and show that intermolecular As-Ga bonding to form four-coordinate gallium and arsenic dominates the structural properties of these compounds. We desired to obtain sterically hindered arsinogallanes by this method. However, we discovered that the practicality of alkane elimination was severely diminished as the steric bulk of the substituents was increased. Subsequently, we employed a coupling reaction involving a lithium arsenide and a chlorogallane to successfully isolate the fist example of a trisarsinogalane which was shown by X-ray analysis to be a monomer containing three-coordinate gallium and arsenic. This coupling method was also used in the formation of the trisarsinogallanes synthesized in our laboratory.