Reversible binding of dinitrogen on a thiolate-bridged cobalt-ruthenium complex supported by a flexible bidentate phosphine ligand.

A well-defined thiolate-bridged cobalt-ruthenium complex is demonstrated to reversibly bind N 2 by modulation of the auxiliary phosphine ligand, which is evidenced by time-dependent 1 H NMR spectroscopy at different temperatures. Notably, this heterobimetallic system represents the first example that can realize N 2 coordination on a sulfur-rich Co-Ru cooperative scaffold.