Isolation of a Catenated Organotelluride Anion in the Sodium Borohydride Reduction of Diphenylditelluride

Far more complex than anticipated is the widely utilized reductive cleavage of diorganoditellurides with sodium borohydride. The isolation and characterization of [Pn(C6H5)4][(TeC6H5)3] (Pn = P, As) suggests that diphenylditelluride is reactive toward the hydride as well as to the phenyltellurolate anion.