2,3,5-Tri-tert-butyl-1-carba-nido-tetraborane

The missing link in the series of tert-butyl derivatives of the isoelectronic nido clusters B₄H₈, CB₃H₇, and NB₃H₆ with a bicyclobutane-type structure is represented by the title compound CB₃H₄tBu₃ ( 1 ), the clusters B₄H₄tBu₄ and NB₃H₃tBu₃ being well known. Compound 1 may also be considered to be a derivative of the nido-triborane B₃H₇, which has hitherto not been isolated, formed by replacing three H atoms by tBu groups and two H atoms by a CH₂ bridge, as expressed by the formula B₃H₂tBu₃(CH₂).