Isolation of a Stable, Acyclic, Two-Coordinate Silylene

The synthesis and characterization of a stable, acyclic two-coordinate silylene, Si­(SArMe6)2 [ArMe6 = C6H3-2,6­(C6H2-2,4,6-Me3)2], by reduction of Br2Si­(SArMe6)2 with a magnesium­(I) reductant is described. It features a V-shaped silicon coordination with a S–Si–S angle of 90.52(2)° and an average Si–S distance of 2.158(3) Å. Although it reacts readily with an alkyl halide, it does not react with hydrogen under ambient conditions, probably as a result of the ca. 4.3 eV energy difference between the frontier silicon lone pair and 3p orbitals.