Hexa(tert-butoxy)dimolybdenum(III)

Hexa(tert-butoxy)dimolybdenum(III) is a coordination complex of molybdenum(III). It is one of the homoleptic alkoxides of molybdenum. An orange, air-sensitive solid, the complex has attracted academic attention as the precursor to many organomolybdenum derivatives. It an example of a charge-neutral complex featuring a molybdenum to molybdenum triple bond (Mo≡Mo), arising from the coupling of a pair of d3 metal centers. It can be prepared by a salt metathesis reaction from the THF complex of molybdenum trichloride and lithium tert-butoxide:
 * 2 MoCl3(thf)3 +  6 LiOBu-t  →  Mo2(OBu-t)6  +  6 LiCl  +  6 thf

The complex and its ditungsten (W2) analogue adopt an ethane-like geometry. The metal to metal bond distance is 222 pm in the related complex Mo2(OCH2CMe3)6.