Low-Valent Actinide Complexes Featuring Tunable Carborane-Based Ligands

Overview: This proposed work seeks to establish a program investigating the fundamental properties of low oxidiation state uranium complexes featuring tunable and three-dimensional carborane-based ligands, then study their reactivity and properties for use in various applications in order to elucidate fundamental properties regarding 5f electrons in the formation of metal-ligand bonding interactions. Specifically, we propose to: 1) synthesize a new class of U(III) complexes and learn how to tune the electronic, physical, and redox properties of these complexes via ligand functionalization 2) study small molecule activation properties of these U(III) complexes 3) explore the dynamic magnetic properties of these U(III) complexes 4) extend the proposed work to include transuranic elements The use of carborane-based ligand frameworks is well established in transition metal chemistry yet almost entirely unexplored in the context of organoactinide chemistry, and carborane ligands offer unique avenues for electronic and structural tuning that are not possible with any comparable aryl-based ligand framework. If successful, this project will significantly increase our understanding of the role of 5f electrons in metal-ligand bonding interactions and potentially establish new research themes within organoactinide chemistry.