A selective reduction of appropriate tetravalent compounds provides an alternative synthetic approach to tin and germanium metallocenes. The preparation of decamethylstannocene (1) was carried out by treating bis (pentamethylcyclopentadieny1) tin dihalides with lithium metal, lithium naphthalenide, and dilithium cyclooctatetraenide. For the reduction of bis ( pentamethylcyclopentadieny1) dichlorogermane to decamethylgermanocene (4), ...
