Six-coordinate Carbon In-class Activity
This is an in-class exercise developed based on a recent paper in Angewandte Chemie International Edition that reported a crystal structure of "six-coordinate" carbon. We normally think of carbon being four-coordinate at most, but this case has definitive evidence otherwise. However, we can use our inorganic chemistry knowledge to understand the structure and bonding of this molecule and rationalize its stability. Students do a pre-class exercise and then construct the MO of fhe molecule in class together.
How did your students do on their first exam?
Is ethylene isoelectronic to dioxygen?
Inquiry-Based Introduction to Carbonyl Ligands
This in-class worksheet introduces students to the different ways we describe organometallic ligands – bonding, properties, spectroscopy, etc. – using carbon monoxide as an example. It is structured as an inquiry-based activity, where students work together in small groups but check in with the entire class at appropriate intervals. I plan to use this activity with my advanced inorganic students next year.