Two neutral compounds containing a zero-valent s-block metal, beryllium, have now been isolated and fully characterized. Structural characterization, supported by calculations, show that these brightly coloured complexes adopt a closed-shell singlet configuration with a Be(0) metal centre and an unusually strong three-centre two-electron π-bond across the C–Be–C unit.
- Merle Arrowsmith
- Holger Braunschweig
- Julia K. Schuster