Joerg Sundermeyer, Udo Radius, Christian Burschka

• A convenient and new entry into the chemistry of highvalent pentamethylcyclopentadienyl halfsandwich complexes of molybdenum and tungsten is described. The reaction of Mo-(NtBu)\(_2\)Cl\(_2\) or W(NtBu)\(_2\)Cl\(_2\)(py)\(_2\) with Cp*Li (Cp* = \(\eta^5\)-C\(_5\)Me\(_5\)) provides a high-yield route to new complexes Cp*Mo-(NtBu)\(_2\)CI (la) and Cp*W(NtBu)\(_2\)Cl (1 b) which are converted into a variety of diimido, monoimido, and oxo derivatives. Treatment of 1 a, b with MeLi yields the highly volatile methyl derivatives Cp*Mo(NtBu)\(_2\)MeA convenient and new entry into the chemistry of highvalent pentamethylcyclopentadienyl halfsandwich complexes of molybdenum and tungsten is described. The reaction of Mo-(NtBu)\(_2\)Cl\(_2\) or W(NtBu)\(_2\)Cl\(_2\)(py)\(_2\) with Cp*Li (Cp* = \(\eta^5\)-C\(_5\)Me\(_5\)) provides a high-yield route to new complexes Cp*Mo-(NtBu)\(_2\)CI (la) and Cp*W(NtBu)\(_2\)Cl (1 b) which are converted into a variety of diimido, monoimido, and oxo derivatives. Treatment of 1 a, b with MeLi yields the highly volatile methyl derivatives Cp*Mo(NtBu)\(_2\)Me (2a) and Cp*W(NtBu)\(_2\)Me (2b), while protolysis of 1 a, b with an excess of HCI gas leads to selective cleavage of only one imido function with formation of Cp*Mo(NtBu)Cl\(_3\) (3a) and Cp*W(NtBu)Cl\(_3\) (3b). In contrast, protolysis of 1 a, b with aqueous HCI provides a high-yield route to the well-known organometallic oxides [Cp*MoO\(_2\)](μ-0) (4a) and [Cp*WO\(_2\)](\(\mu\)-0) (4b). These two key compounds are easily converted into the organomolybdate and organotungstate salts NBu\(_4\)[Cp*MoO\(_3\)] (5a) and NBu\(_4\)[Cp*WO\(_3\)] (Sb) by cleavage of the M - 0 - M bridge with NBu\(_4\)[OH]. The Xray structure of 3a is reported.…