Principles of bonding and reactivity in transition metal cluster compounds

The bonding in transition metal cluster compounds is examined by partitioning the system into the component parts suggested by expressions for the total energy. The nature of MM (metal-metal) interactions, ML (metal-ligand) interactions and LL (ligand-ligand) interactions are examined, and their effect on the stability and hence structure of the system considered. The processes by which one structure can rearrange into another are discussed. Some consideration is given to the partitioning of a cluster into ML_j fragments, and the interactions between these fragments. Isolobal analogies are discussed in this context. The emphasis of this work is on the general principles behind the structure and reactivity of transition metal cluster compounds, rather than focusing on specific systems.