A Technetium Discovery Laboratory by Roca Jungfer Research Group

A fundamental question:

Alkyne Complexes of Technetium

Since their discovery, alkyne complexes have been isolated for all but one element of the central d-block: technetium, the predominatly man-made radioelement. This is especially surprising given the abundance, ease of formation, and structural variety of alkyne complexes containing the heavier, chemically often similar homolog of technetium, rhenium. These remarkable differences suggest and underscore a notorious distinction between the organometallic chemistry of the two closely related elements. The possibility for the coordination of alkynes to technetium is therefore of fundamental interest to the organometallic chemistry of the elements. Plentiful attempts to bind alkyne ligands to technetium have been made during the past years and indeed some reaction products requiring the intermediary coordination of an alkyne (followed by the immediate isomerization to a vinylidene carbene) could be isolated. Very recently, methods for the reliable preparation of end-on-coordinating acetylido complexes of technetium have been unlocked.

Since their discovery, alkyne complexes have been isolated for all but one element of the central d-block: technetium, the predominatly man-made radioelement. This is especially surprising given the abundance, ease of formation, and structural variety of alkyne complexes containing the heavier, chemically often similar homolog of technetium, rhenium. These remarkable differences suggest and underscore a notorious distinction between the organometallic chemistry of the two closely related elements. The possibility for the coordination of alkynes to technetium is therefore of fundamental interest to the organometallic chemistry of the elements. Plentiful attempts to bind alkyne ligands to technetium have been made during the past years and indeed some reaction products requiring the intermediary coordination of an alkyne (followed by the immediate isomerization to a vinylidene carbene) could be isolated. Very recently, methods for the reliable preparation of end-on-coordinating acetylido complexes of technetium have been unlocked.

Reinventing

Technetium Nitrosyl Complexes

Nitrosyl ligands stabilize technetium in low oxidation states such as +I or +II. They are usually linearly bound, consistent with a cationic state of the non-innocent nitrosyl unit in such compounds. The development of new nitrosyl-containing technetium starting materials is challenging, with the preparative scalability being a major limitation for systematic derivatization studies.