Two-Step Mechanochemical Synthesis of Carbene Complexes of Palladium(II) and Platinum(II)

A mechanochemical strategy for the synthesis of N-heterocyclic carbene complexes is described, in which 1,3-dibenzylimidazole complexes of palladium and platinum are produced in a two-step process by grinding together the reactants with a mortar and pestle. Crystallographic characterization reveals that unlike the solution syntheses, which produce a mixture of products, the solid-state reactions occur under topochemical conditions affording isomerically and polymorphically pure products.