A data-intensive re-evaluation of semibridging carbonyl ligands.

Structural data pertaining to bimetallic complexes with semibridging carbonyl (SBCO) ligands are analyzed using a comprehensive search of the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD). A brief review of the history of SBCO structures is presented, and this history is evaluated in light of the vastly larger dataset available today from the CSD. Additionally, computational analysis is used to reinforce conclusions from the structural data analysis, as well as to estimate the strength of a typical SBCO interaction. In view of the increasing number of research groups pursuing bimetallic strategies in inorganic/organometallic chemistry, this study adds to the understanding regarding an interaction type that, while weak, is known to play important structural and kinetic roles in certain systems.