Synthesis, solution behaviour and X‐ray structures of [2‐(Me 2 NCH 2 )C 6 H 4 ]SnCl 3 and [2‐(Me 2 NCH 2 )C 6 H 4 ]SnCl 3 ·DMSO

[2‐(Me 2 NCH 2 )C 6 H 4 ]SnCl 3 ( 1 ) was prepared via (i) salt elimination reaction between RLi and SnCl 4 (1:1 molar ratio), in toluene solution, and (ii) redistribution reaction between [2‐(Me 2 NCH 2 )C 6 H 4 ] 4 Sn and SnCl 4 (1:3 molar ratio), in the absence of a solvent. Recrystallization from DMSO afforded the isolation of the DMSO adduct [2‐(Me 2 NCH 2 )C 6 H 4 ]SnCl 3 ·DMSO ( 1a ). The compounds were characterized by multinuclear NMR ( 1 H, 13 C, 119 Sn) in solution. The molecular structures of 1 and 1a were determined by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. The crystal structure of compounds 1 and 1a consists of discrete monomeric molecular units separated by normal van der Waals distances between heavy atoms. The N atom of the pendant CH 2 NMe 2 arm is strongly coordinated to the tin atom, thus resulting in distorted trigonal bipyramidal ( C , N )SnCl 3 and octahedral ( C , N )SnCl 3 O cores for 1 and 1a , respectively. For both compounds hydrogen bonding generates supramolecular associations in crystal. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.