Hexachlorodisilane
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Hexachlorodisilane is the
inorganic compound An inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds⁠that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as ''inorganic chemistry''. Inorgan ...
with the
chemical formula A chemical formula is a way of presenting information about the chemical proportions of atoms that constitute a particular chemical compound or molecule, using chemical element symbols, numbers, and sometimes also other symbols, such as pare ...
Si2Cl6.Simmler, W. "Silicon Compounds, Inorganic", ''Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry'', Weinheim: Wiley-VCH. It is a colourless liquid that fumes in moist air. It has specialty applications in as a reagent and as a volatile precursor to silicon metal.


Structure and synthesis

The molecule adopts a structure like
ethane Ethane ( , ) is a naturally occurring Organic compound, organic chemical compound with chemical formula . At standard temperature and pressure, ethane is a colorless, odorless gas. Like many hydrocarbons, ethane is List of purification methods ...
, with a single Si-Si bond length of 233 pm. Hexachlorodisilane is produced in the chlorination of silicides such as e.g. calcium silicide. Idealized syntheses are as follows: :CaSi2 + 4 Cl2 → Si2Cl6 + CaCl2


Reactions and uses

Hexachlorodisilane is stable under air or nitrogen at temperatures of at least up to 400°C for several hours, but decomposes to dodecachloroneopentasilane and
silicon tetrachloride Silicon tetrachloride or tetrachlorosilane is the inorganic compound with the formula SiCl4. It is a colorless volatile liquid that fumes in air. It is used to produce high purity silicon and silica for commercial applications. It is a part of the ...
in presence of Lewis bases even at room temperature.Emeleus, H. J., and Muhammad Tufail. "Reaction of Hexachlorodisilane with Bases and Alkyl Halides." Journal of Inorganic and Nuclear Chemistry 29.8 (1967): 2081-084 :4 Si2Cl6 → 3 SiCl4 + Si5Cl12 This conversion is useful in making silicon-based components of use in semiconducting devices including photovoltaic cells. The compound is also useful
reagent In chemistry, a reagent ( ) or analytical reagent is a substance or compound added to a system to cause a chemical reaction, or test if one occurs. The terms ''reactant'' and ''reagent'' are often used interchangeably, but reactant specifies a ...
for the deoxygenation reactions, such as this general process involving a phosphine oxide: :2 Si2Cl6 + OPR3 → OSi2Cl6 + PR3


References

Chlorosilanes