Theoretical insight into the interaction between SnX2 (X = H, F, Cl, Br, I) and benzene.

For a series of five model complexes composed of a singlet SnX2 molecule (X = H, F, Cl, Br, I) and a benzene molecule, the first-principles calculations of their energetics and the analysis of their electron density topology have been performed. The CCSD(T)/CBS interaction energy between SnX2 and C6H6 fall into the range between -10.0 and -11.2 kcal/mol, which indicates that the complexes are rather weakly bound. The relevant role of electrostatic and dispersion contributions to the interaction energy between SnX2 and C6H6 is highlighted in the results obtained from the symmetry-adapted perturbation theory (SAPT). The electron density topological analysis has been carried out using the quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) and the noncovalent interactions (NCI) visualization index. Both QTAIM and NCI prove the closed-shell, noncovalent and attractive character of the interaction. A very small charge transfer from C6H6 to SnX2 has been detected. The formation of the five complexes is accompanied by the electron density deformations that are spatially restricted mostly to the region around the Sn atom and its adjacent C atom. The results presented in this work shed some light on the nature of the interactions associated with crystalline structural motifs involving low-valent tin complexed with neutral aryl rings.