Crystal structures of 9-[bis-(benzyl-sulfan-yl)meth-yl]anthracene and of cyclo-dodeca-kis-(μ(2)-phenyl-methane-thiol-ato-κ(2) S:S)hexa-palladium(6 Pd-Pd)-anthracene-9,10-dione (1/1).

The first title compound, C(29)H(24)S(2), L1, represents an example of an anthracene-based functionalized di-thio-ether, which may be useful as a potential chelating or terminal ligand for coordination chemistry. This di-thio-acetal L1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2(1)/c. The phenyl rings of the benzyl groups and that of the anthracene unit form dihedral angles of 49.21†(4) and 58.79†(5)° and the crystal structure displays short C-H⋯π contacts. Surprisingly, when attempting to coordinate L1 to [PdCl(2)(PhCN)(2)], instead of the targeted chelate complex [PdCl(2)(κ(2)-L1)], a cleavage reaction leads to the formation of the centrosymmetric hexa-nuclear cyclic cluster of composition [Pd(6)(μ(2)-SCH(2)Ph)(12)] Pd6, or [Pd(6)(C(7)H(7)S)(12)]·C(14)H(8)O(2). This tiara-shaped hexa-mer crystallizing in the triclinic space group P consists of six approximately square planar Pd(II)S(4) centers, which are inter-connected through twelve μ(2)-bridging benzyl thiol-ate groups. The Pd⋯Pd contacts range from 3.0892†(2) to 3.1609†(2)†à and can be considered as weakly bonding. The unit cell of Pd6 contains also a co-crystallized anthracene-9,10-dione mol-ecule.