Palladium and Platinum Silyl Complexes as Reactive Intermediates for the Catalytic Hydrogenolysis of Disilanes

The research project involves the development of a homogeneous catalytic process for the hydrogenolysis of disilanes with H2. The elementary steps of a putative catalytic cycle will be investigated by model reactions. After an oxidative addition of disilanes at neutral complexes, a hydrogenolysis of the metal-silicon bond will be studied. Cationic silyl complexes, which possess a free coordination site, will also be synthesized. Mechanistically oxidative addition reactions, reductive eliminations or o-bond metathesis reactions may play a certain role. We will try to detect intermediates by low temperature IR, Raman and NMR spectroscopy. Based on the model reactions a new catalytic cycle for the transition metal mediated hydrogenolysis of disilanes will be developed.