Tris(4-bromophenyl)aminium hexachloridoantimonate ('Magic Blue'): a strong oxidant with low inner-sphere reorganization

Acta Cryst. (2010). C66, m171-m173 (doi.org/10.1107/S0108270110019748)

The commercially available amine radical cation tris(4-bromophenyl)aminium hexachloridoantimonate, dubbed 'Magic Blue', is prized by chemists for its high oxidation potential and its propensity to undergo simple electron transfer reactions. Structural studies of the neutral triarylamine and its radical cation show that the bond distances and angles are almost identical in the two species. This small degree of structural rearrangement on electron transfer contributes to the kinetic efficiency of Magic Blue as an oxidant.