Variations in binding modes of 2-mercaptobenzoxazolates in the novel cyclic trinuclear complexes [Mn3(CO)10(μ-SCNOC6H4)3] and [Re3(CO)12(μ-SCNOC6H4)3]

Reactions of [M2(CO)8(MeCN)2] (MMn, Re) with 2-mercaptobenzoxazol afford 54-electron trinuclear clusters [Mn3(CO)10(μ-SCNOC6H4)3] and [Re3(CO)12(μ-SCNOC6H4)3]; the former contains 2-mercaptobenzoxazolate ligands in three different binding modes, while in the latter all three bridge rhenium centres by S,N-coordination, but the three rhenium atoms all have different coordination environments.