Recent Advances in Rare-Earth Polypnictides

The polypnictide complexes of rare earth cations have drawn the attention of the scientific community for their uncommon bonding modes and potential applications. Herein, we present a systematic and comprehensive summary on recent advances in the field of rare earth polypnictides, focusing on their synthesis, structures, and reactivities. The structural stabilizing effects imposed by the electropositive rare earth cations as well as the reducing capability of rare earth precursors in the synthesis of these polypnictide complexes are described in this review. We also disscuss in detail the bonding interactions and coordination modes between rare earth cations and polypnictide clusters as well as the similarities and the peculiarity of some structures.