Molecular Clusters of the Main Group Elements

The ability to synthesize defined molecular clusters of main group metals and nonmetals has greatly spurred development in cluster science. Clusters of main group elements such as boron, gallium and silicon exhibit unique chemical and physical properties which make them attractive as building blocks for functional materials and for use in high-performance applications. With more than 20 contributions from leading research groups, this book provides essential information for chemists and materials scientists working with molecular clusters. Its systematic coverage of all relevant main group elements makes this the prime reference source in the field. It treats both homonuclear and heteronuclear clusters, including: the theory and concepts in main-group cluster chemistry, novel boranes and heteroboranes, silicon/germanium/tin clusters, alkali metal suboxides, clusters in alloys with mercury, chalkogen clusters and numerous other compound classes. The whole is illustrated by examples of the great potential for technical applications such as electron storage, cancer therapy and in materials synthesis. Its systematic coverage of all relevant main group elements makes this the prime reference source in the field.

Table of Contents:
Preface.List of Contributors.1. Theory and Concepts in Main-Group Cluster Chemistry (R. King & P. Schleyer).2.1 Homonuclear Boron Clusters (H. Noth).2.2 Boron Clusters in Medical Applications (D. Gabel & Y. Endo).2.3 Clusters of the Heavier Group 13 Elements (G. Schnockel, et al.).2.4 Discret and Extended Metal Clusters in Alloys with Mercury and Other Group 12 Elements (H. Deiseroth).2.5 Molecular Cages and Clusters of the Heavier Group 14 Elements (E= Si, Ge, Sn or Pb) of Formula EnRm (n > m) (N. Wiberg & P. Power).2.6 Homoatomic Cages and Clusters of the Heavier Group 15 Elements: Neutral Species and Cations (I. Krossing).2.7 Cages and Clusters of the Chaicogens (W. Sheldrick).3.1 Alkali and Alkaline Earth Metal Suboxides and Subnitrides (A. Simon).3.2 Carboranes: From Small Organoboranes to Clusters (A. Berndt, et al.).3.3 Heteropolyboranes With the Heavier Group 14 Elements (L. Wesemann & N. Hosmane).3.4 Borane Clusters with Group 15 and Group 16 Heteroatoms: Survey of Compounds and Structures (P. Paetzold).3.5 Heteropolyalanes, -gallanes, -indanes and -thallanes (W. Uhl and H. Roesky).3.6 Cluster Growing Through Ionic Aggregation: Synthesis and Structural Principles of Main Group Metal-Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Arsenic Rich Clusters (M. Driess, et al.).Index.

About the Author :
Matthias Driess was born in 1961 in Eisenach, Thuringia. He received his chemistry diploma and Ph.D. degree from the University of Heidelberg under the supervision of Professor Walter Siebert and studied philosophy inspired by Professor Erhard Scheibe (Heidelberg) and Paul Feyerabend (ETH Zurich and Berkeley). After a one-year postdoctoral position with Professor Robert West in Madison, Wisconsin (U.S.A.), he returned to Heidelberg and finished his habilitation with the thesis entitled "silicon and phosphorus in unusual coordination" in 1993. After two more intellectually exciting years as lecturer at the Institutte of Inorganic Chemistry in Heidelberg, he was appointed as full professor of inorganic chemistry at the Ruhr-University Bochum in 1996. His research activities presently pursue two main directions: the synthesis of novel molecular functions based on compounds of the heavier main group elements and the conception of multiple-talented molecular single-source precursors for the synthesis of nanoscaled solids in catalysis and materials science. He received a generous fellowship of the "Fonds der Chemischen Indistrie" (1996), the Chemistry Award of the Academy of Science at the University of Gottingen (1997) and the "Otto-Klung-Award of Chemistry" of the Free University at Berlin (2000). Heinrich Noth is professor emeritus of inorganic chemistry at the University of Munich and President of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities. He studied chemistry at the University of Munich. After receiving his PhD degree he joined ICI Ltd. in Britain as a research officer. A year later he returned to Munich where he began his studies on electronprecise polyboranes. In 1966 he became a full professor at the University of Marburg. Three years later he succeeded his former academic teacher, Egon Wiberg, at the University of Munich where he retired in 1996. He is still active in the field of main group chemistry, with a strong emphasis on hydrides and particularly the chemistry of boron, and has made almost 800 publications to date.

Review :
"This book is by far the best such compilation produced to date." (Journal of the American Chemical Society, February 16, 2005) "The present publication will be of great value for researchers working with molecular clusters." (E-STREAMS, November 2004)