The structure of N-methylbenzothiazole-2-selone dichloride: A novel 'zipper' arrangement of T-shaped molecules linked via intermolecular Cl-Cl contacts

The reaction of 1 mole equivalent of sulfuryl chloride with N-methylbenzothiazole-2-selone, mbts, produces the yellow 1:1 addition compound, mbts·Cl2 (1), which exhibits a T-shaped geometry with intermolecular Cl-Cl interactions. These give rise to a novel 'zipper' packing arrangement of linear chains of Cl-Se-Cl-Cl-Se-Cl atoms in the crystalline state. Both T-shaped Cl-Se-Cl and linear Se-Cl···Cl moieties can be observed because of this; the latter interaction being essentially ionic rather than charge transfer. FT-Raman studies imply the presence of a green metastable isomer (2) of 1. Compound 1 represents the first structurally characterised 1:1 dichloride adduct of the form R2CSeCl2. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.