Key factors in pincer ligand design

Abstract

Pincers, tridentate ligands that prefer a meridional geometry, are a rising class because of their distinctive combination of properties. They permit a good level of control on the nature of the coordination sphere by holding the donor groups in a predictable arrangement. Some groups, such as an aryl or a pyridine, that would normally be easily lost as monodentate ligands, become reliably coordinated, especially if they form the central donor unit of the three. Many pincer complexes show exceptional thermal stability, a property that is particularly prized in homogeneous catalysis where they can permit high temperature operation. The connectors between the three donor groups are often rigid, enforcing a strict mer geometry but flexible linkers permit fac binding and even fluxionality between the two forms. Rigid pincers can make good ligands for asymmetric catalysis-if the wingtip groups cannot easily rotate they may instead maintain a geometry in which suitable substituents project into the active site area of the catalyst where they help enantio-differentiation of the relevant transition states. Examples have been selected to illustrate these and other properties of this promising ligand class.