Experimental distribution of electron density in crystals of Ph 3 Sb(O 2 CCH=CH–CH=CH–CH 3 ) 2 complex: the selection of a reference point for the source function in the absence of a bond critical point between atoms

In this article, we report on the results of experimental and theoretical (DFT calculation of an isolated molecule) investigation of electron density in a triphenylantimony disorbate complex (triphenylantimony bis(hexa-2,4-dienoate), Ph 3 Sb(O 2 CCH=CH–CH=CH–CH 3 ) 2 ( 1 )). A topological analysis of the electron density was carried out in the framework of the quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM), which allows to study the nature of chemical bonds and the molecular graph in Ph 3 Sb(O 2 CCH=CH–CH=CH–CH 3 ) 2 complex. The molecular graph is an important tool for determining the interacting atoms. However, the molecular graph of the triphenylantimony disorbate complex did not show the presence of the “expected” intramolecular interactions between the antimony atom and the carbonyl oxygen one. Such a situation can be caused by electron density low curvature between these atoms. It is extremely difficult case, and sometimes it is not possible to find all the “expected” bond paths and critical points (3,−1). Thus, the molecular graph for this class of compounds does not provide a definitive picture of the chemical bonding and should be complemented with other descriptors, such as а source function (SF) and non-covalent interaction (NCI) index. It was found that in some cases using the SF on the NCI isosurface allows to interpret intramolecular interactions in the absence of a bond critical point more correctly. In this article, presence of intramolecular interaction in the absence of a bond critical point between the antimony atom and the carboxylate oxygen one was shown. The carboxylate fragment always acts as a source of the electron density for the Sb…O(carbonyl) interactions, whereas the antimony atom can be both a source and a sink for it.