Alkynylsilanes bearing one to four alkynyl groups at silicon, with organyl groups (Me, Ph, Vin), H, Cl at silicon, and with substituents H, nBu, tBu, Ph, C6H4-4-Me, 3-thienyl, CH2NMe2 at the C≡C bond, were prepared, and their 13C and 29Si NMR data are reported. The results of X-ray structure analyses of three representative derivatives [di(phenylethynyl)dimethylsilane, di(phenylethynyl) methyl(phenyl)silane, and tri(phenylethynyl)methylsilane] are presented. The chemistry of mono- and dialkynylsilanes was further developed to prepare compounds with alternating Si atoms and C≡C bonds, affording new dialkynylsilanes as well as numerous new vinylsilanes which have also been characterized by 13C and 29Si NMR spectroscopy in solution. In the case of ethynyl(triphenylsilylethynyl) dimethylsilane, the molecular structure was determined by X-ray diffraction.
The reaction of the di(alkyn-1-yl)silanes Me2Si(C≡CSiMe2H)2 1a and Me(H)Si(C≡CSiMe2H)2 1b with triethylborane was studied. In the case of 1a, the 4-ethyl-3-diethylboryl-1,1-dimethyl-2,5- bis(dimethylsilyl)-1-sila-2,4-cyclop entadiene 2a was the sole product. In the case of 1b, the analogous silole 2b was formed along with two other products which were identified as di(alkenyl)silanes 3b and 4b, in which different types of electron-deficient Si-H-B bridges could be detected. All products were characterised by consistent sets of solution NMR data (1H, 11B, 13C and 29Si NMR). The coupling constants 1J(13C,13C) were measured for 2a and calculated by using DFT methods (B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) level of theory)