STEREOCHEMISTRY OF ARSENIC: VIII. CYANODIMETHYLARSINE (CACODYL CYANIDE)
Crystals of cyanodimethylarsine, (CH3)2AsCN, are triclinic with two molecules in a unit cell of dimensions a = 6.31, b = 8.02, c = 6.27 Å, α = 110°00′, β = 119°45′, γ = 81°47′, space group [Formula: see text]. The structure has been determined from projections along the three crystallographic axes, and the mean values of the bond lengths and valency angles (with estimated standard deviations) are: As—C = 1.96±0.03 Å, C—N = 1.16 ± 0.07 Å, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]. There is an unusually short As … N intermolecular separation, which is indicative of charge-transfer bonding involving donation of nitrogen lone pair electrons to vacant arsenic 4d orbitals; the other intermolecular approaches correspond to normal van der Waals interactions.