C–H Bond Activation by σ‑Bond Metathesis as a Versatile Route toward Highly Efficient Initiators for the Catalytic Precision Polymerization of Polar Monomers

Rare earth metals show high activities
toward C–H bond activation
of heteroaromatic substrates and even methane. In this work, we demonstrate
the suitability of this synthetic approach to rare earth metallocenes
and show the applicability of the resulting complexes as highly efficient
initiators for rare earth metal-mediated group transfer polymerization.
Bis­(cyclopentadienyl)­(4,6-dimethylpyridin-2-yl)­methyl lanthanide
complexes exhibit unprecedented initiation rates for rare earth metal-mediated
dialkyl vinylphosphonate polymerization and facilitate an efficient
initiation for a broad scope of Michael acceptor-type monomers.