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1. Boron‐Made N ₂ : Realization of a B≡B Triple Bond in the B ₂ Al ₃ ⁻ Cluster

   https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.202001159  

   Fedik, Nikita; Mu, Chaonan; Popov, Ivan A.; Wang, Wei; Wang, Jie; Wang, Haopeng; Bowen, Kit H.; Boldyrev, Alexander I.; Zhang, Xinxing (June 2020, Chemistry – A European Journal)
2. B ₄₈ ⁻ : a bilayer boron cluster

   https://doi.org/10.1039/D0NR09214B  

   Chen, Wei-Jia; Ma, Yuan-Yuan; Chen, Teng-Teng; Ao, Mei-Zhen; Yuan, Dao-Fu; Chen, Qiang; Tian, Xin-Xin; Mu, Yue-Wen; Li, Si-Dian; Wang, Lai-Sheng (February 2021, Nanoscale)

   null (Ed.)

   Size-selected negatively-charged boron clusters (B n − ) have been found to be planar or quasi-planar in a wide size range. Even though cage structures emerged as the global minimum at B 39 − , the global minimum of B 40 − was in fact planar. Only in the neutral form did the B 40 borospherene become the global minimum. How the structures of larger boron clusters evolve is of immense interest. Here we report the observation of a bilayer B 48 − cluster using photoelectron spectroscopy and first-principles calculations. The photoelectron spectra of B 48 − exhibit two well-resolved features at low binding energies, which are used as electronic signatures to compare with theoretical calculations. Global minimum searches and theoretical calculations indicate that both the B 48 − anion and the B 48 neutral possess a bilayer-type structure with D 2h symmetry. The simulated spectrum of the D 2h B 48 − agrees well with the experimental spectral features, confirming the bilayer global minimum structure. The bilayer B 48 −/0 clusters are found to be highly stable with strong interlayer covalent bonding, revealing a new structural type for size-selected boron clusters. The current study shows the structural diversity of boron nanoclusters and provides experimental evidence for the viability of bilayer borophenes. 

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3. Structure and Properties of Boron-Very-Rich Boron Carbides: B ₁₂ Icosahedra Linked through Bent CBB Chains

   https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.7b11767  

   Yang, Xiaokun; Goddard, William A.; An, Qi (January 2018, The Journal of Physical Chemistry C)
4. Facile proton-coupled electron transfer enabled by coordination-induced E–H bond weakening to boron

   https://doi.org/10.1039/D1CC02832D  

   Wong, Anthony; Chakraborty, Arunavo; Bawari, Deependra; Wu, Guang; Dobrovetsky, Roman; Ménard, Gabriel (January 2021, Chemical Communications)

   null (Ed.)

   We report the facile activation of aryl E–H (ArEH; E = N, O, S; Ar = Ph or C 6 F 5 ) or ammonia N–H bonds via coordination-induced bond weakening to a redox-active boron center in the complex, (1 − ). Substantial decreases in E–H bond dissociation free energies (BDFEs) are observed upon substrate coordination, enabling subsequent facile proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET). A drop of >50 kcal mol −1 in H 2 N–H BDFE upon coordination was experimentally determined. 

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5. Enhancement of tetrel bond involving tetrazole-TtR ₃ (Tt = C, Si; R = H, F). Promotion of SiR ₃ transfer by a triel bond

   https://doi.org/10.1039/D2CP04194D  

   Wu, Qiaozhuo; Xie, Xiaoying; Li, Qingzhong; Scheiner, Steve (November 2022, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics)

   When attached to a tetrazole, a TtR 3 group (Tt = C, Si; R = H, F) engages in a Tt⋯N tetrel bond (TtB) with the Lewis base NCM (M = Li, Na). MP2/aug-cc-pVTZ calculations find that the Si⋯N TtB is rather strong, more than 20 kcal mol −1 for SiH 3 , and between 46 and 53 kcal mol −1 for SiF 3 . The C⋯N TtBs are relatively weaker, less than 8 kcal mol −1 . All of these bonds are intensified when a BH 3 or BF 3 molecule forms a triel bond to a N atom of the tetrazole ring, particularly for the C⋯N TtB, up to 11 kcal mol −1 . In these triads, the SiR 3 group displaces far enough along the line toward the base that it may be thought of as half transferred. 

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