Coordination of Tri-Substituted Nona-Germanium Clusters to Cu(I) and Pd(0)

The recently developed approach for the rational functionalization of deltahedral nona germanium clusters Ge-9(4-) with three substituents to form Ge9R3- (R = Si(SiMe3)(3)) in large amounts has made the latter a convenient starting material for further reactivity studies. Reported here are the synthesis, structures, and solution studies of two compounds where Ge9R3- are used as ligands to transition metals, [(Ge9R3)Cu-I(Ge9R3)(CuPPh3)-P-I] (1) and [(Ge9R3)Pd (Ge9R3)](2-) (2). The former adds to the families of anionic [(Ge9R3)M-I(Ge9R3)](-) (M-I = Cu, Ag, and Au) as a neutral member and of the neutral [(Ge9R3)M-II(Ge9R3)] (M-II = Zn, Cd, and Hg), while the latter represents the first compound involving a metal from group 10.