A Lanthanide−Gallium Complex Stabilized by the N-Heterocyclic Carbene Group

The complex [Nd(L‘){Ga(NArCH) 2 }(N‘ ‘)(THF)], which exhibits the first f-element−gallium bond, is formed from the reaction between the N-heterocyclic carbene-supported neodymium complex [Nd(L‘)(N‘ ‘)(I)] (L‘ = Bu t NCH 2 CH 2 {C(NCSiMe 3 CHNBu t )}; N‘ ‘ = N(SiMe 3 ) 2 ) and the anionic gallium(I) heterocycle [Ga(NArCH) 2 ][K(tmeda)] (Ar = 2,6-Pr i 2 C 6 H 3 ). The Nd−Ga bond energy is calculated to be 386 kJ mol -1 .