edited by Preston A Chase (Utrecht University, The Netherlands) & Gerard van Koten (Utrecht University, The Netherlands)

This book gives an account of the various facets of the development and use of organometallic complexes supported by the pincer group. Developed in the mid-1970s, the basic structure of metal complexes with this ligand contains a direct metal–carbon bond that is flanked by two potentially coordinating heteroatom-containing arms. Since its discovery, the pincer platform has been adopted as a base for numerous studies in fundamental reactions, bonding, catalysis, and materials.

Unlike other books that concentrate on specific classes of pincer metal complexes, this volume presents this large body of pincer chemistry by focusing on applications and reaction types. It describes all the different types of pincer complexes within the context of each area, such as bond activation, catalysis, or supramolecular chemistry, and thus highlights the factors that contribute to the capability of one class over another for a specific application. Such a broad overview will be covered with a look to future, cutting-edge research, and will hopefully inspire others to continue to apply this ligand set to new and challenging problems in chemistry.

• A Personal Perspective on the Development of the Pincer Ligand (P A Chase & G van Koten)
• Synthetic Methods in Pincer Chemistry: Ligand Formation and Metal Incorporation (P A Chase & G van Koten)
• Reactivity and Properties of Metallopincer Complexes (P A Chase & G van Koten)
• Pincer Complexes as Catalysts in Organic Chemistry (K Szabó)
• Activation of Unreactive Bonds Catalyzed by Pincer Complexes (D Milstein)
• Structural Aspects of the Aggregate and Cluster Chemistry of Pincer Complexes (R Gossage et al.)
• Multimeric and Dendritic Metallopincers (G van Klink)
• Pincer Complexes in Supramolecular Chemistry and Biochemistry (B Klein Gebbink & H Dijkstra)