Bis(tetraphenylphosphonium) (hexasulfido-2kappa2S1,S6)di-mu-sulfido-disulfido-1kappa2S-tungsten(VI)zinc(II) acetone solvate.

The title complex, (C(24)H(20)P)(2)[WZnS(4)(S(6))].C(3)H(6)O or (Ph(4)P)(2)[WS(2)(mu-S)(2){Zn(S(6))}].Me(2)CO, was unexpectedly obtained on attempted recrystallization of a mixed tungten-zinc complex of a tris(pyrazolato)borate ligand. The two metal centres of the anion have distorted tetrahedral coordination and the two tetrahedra share one S...S edge; tungsten is additionally coordinated by two terminal sulfide ligands and zinc by a chelating S(6)(2-) ligand, which has one central S-S bond significantly longer than the other four, a pattern found to be consistent for this ligand. This is the first reported example of a tetrahedral zinc centre bridging an edge of a single tetrathiotungstate(VI) or tetrathiomolybdate(VI) anion, although there are many previous examples with other metals.