Ligand properties of tri(2-thienyl)- and tri(2-furyl)phosphine and -arsine (2-C₄H₃E)₃P/As (E = O, S) in gold(I) complexes

Tri(2-thienyl)- and tri(2-furyl)phosphine and -arsine (L) have been introduced as ligands to gold(I) chloride and acetate (AuX). Structural studies have shown that in the 1:1 complexes of the type L-Au-X the gold atoms are bound exclusively to the phosphorus/arsenic centers without any intra- or intermolecular approach of the donor atoms of the three heterocycles towards the metal atoms. Intermolecular aurophilic bonding is found in the crystals of the [tri(thienyl)phosphine]gold acetate complex, but is absent in crystals of the chloride complexes. The phosphines L have been quaternized with methyl iodide and the resulting phosphonium salts [LMe]I structurally characterized to provide reference data as to the preferred configurational and conformational motifs. The mass spectra of the gold complexes indicate a high stability of the dinuclear cationic species [(LAu)₂X]⁺ with X = Cl, OAc for all ligands L.