Gas Phase Preparation of the Elusive Monobridged Ge(µ -H)GeH Molecule via Non-Adiabatic Reaction Dynamics

A wealth of structures for the Ge2H2+ radical cation: comparison of theory and experiment

Five structures of Ge2H2 and Ge2H2+ are investigated in this study. Optimized geometries at the CCSD(T)/cc-pwCVQZ-PP level of theory were obtained. Focal point analyses were performed on these optimized geometries to determine relative energies using the CCSD(T) method with polarized basis sets up to quintuple-zeta. Energy corrections include full T and pertubative (Q) coupled-cluster effects plus anharmonic corrections to the zero-point vibrational energy. Relative ordering in energy from lowest to highest of the five Ge2H2+ structures is butterfly, germylidene, monobridged, trans, then linear. In neutral Ge2H2, the monobridged structure lies lower in energy than the germylidene structure. Fundamental vibrational frequencies and IR intensities were computed for the minima at the CCSD(T)/cc-pwCVTZ-PP level of theory to compare with experimental research. Partial atomic charges and natural bonding orbital analyses indicated that the positive charge of Ge2H2+ is contained in the region of the Ge-Ge bond.

Gas-Phase Preparation of 1-Germavinylidene (H2CGe; X1A1), the Isovalent Counterpart of Vinylidene (H2CC; X1A1), via Non-adiabatic Dynamics through the Elementary Reaction of Ground State Atomic Carbon (C; 3P) with Germane (GeH4; X1A1)

1-Germavinylidene (H₂CGe; X¹A₁), the germanium analogue of vinylidene (H₂CC; X¹A₁), was prepared via a directed gas-phase synthesis through the bimolecular reaction of ground state atomic carbon (C; ³P) with germane (GeH₄; X¹A₁) under single-collision conditions. The reaction commences with the barrierless insertion of carbon into the Ge-H bond followed by intersystem crossing from the triplet to singlet surface and migration of atomic hydrogen to germylene (H₂GeCH₂), which predominantly decomposes via molecular hydrogen loss to 1-germavinylidene (H₂CGe; X¹A₁). Therefore, the replacement of a single carbon atom in the acetylene-vinylidene system by germanium critically impacts the chemical bonding, molecular structure, and thermodynamic stability of the carbene-type structures favoring 1-germavinylidene (H₂CGe) over germyne (HGeCH) by 160 kJ mol^-1. Hence, the carbon-germane system represents a benchmark in the exploration of the chemistries of main group 14 elements with germanium-bearing systems showing few similarities with the isovalent carbon system.