Rare Earth Pincer Complexes: Synthesis, Reaction Chemistry, and Catalysis

The research field surrounding rare earth pincer complexes has reached a stage where a comprehensive review about the reactivity and catalytic behavior of these species is justified. In this contribution, we begin with a brief introduction on common strategies for the preparation of rare earth pincer complexes, continuing with a section devoted to the versatile reactivity observed for this class of compound. Thereafter, several types of compounds are discussed, including extremely reactive hydrides, cationic species, and intriguing scandium imido complexes. Finally, the last portion of this chapter sums up the hitherto reported catalytic studies, including discussions on ring-opening polymerization of cyclic esters, polymerization of olefins and hydroamination reactions, as well as several examples of more infrequently encountered catalytic processes.