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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →In 2007, Cameron Jones, Andreas Stasch and colleagues reported the first stable compounds containing magnesium in the +1 oxidation state. The key was not a lone Mg(I) ion: two magnesium atoms formed a bonded, dinuclear Mg22+ unit, while bulky ligands helped protect it. A 2025 study broadened the approach with Mg(I) complexes supported by non-nitrogen ligands, including cyclopentadienyl and aryloxide examples.
Why the 2007 result mattered
Magnesium is commonly encountered in the +2 oxidation state. The 2007 report showed that magnesium could also be isolated in stable compounds assigned to +1—a significant expansion of magnesium chemistry, not the discovery of magnesium compounds generally.
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The compounds were dinuclear: each contained two Mg(I) centers joined by an Mg–Mg bond. Together, the two +1 centers form the Mg22+ core. Bulky ligands surrounding the core helped stabilize it. The result therefore depended on both the unusual metal–metal unit and its chemical environment.
How the researchers made and identified the compounds
Reduction of a magnesium(II) precursor
As described in Chemistry World’s 2007 account of the work, one route began with a magnesium(II) precursor bearing bulky ligands and bridging iodine atoms. The researchers treated it with potassium metal, reducing the precursor to the target dinuclear Mg(I) compound.
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Evidence for the Mg(I) assignment
The team combined crystallography, theoretical chemistry and spectroscopy to support the proposed structure and oxidation-state assignment. The combined evidence also helped distinguish the Mg(I) interpretation from a possible alternative involving bridging hydrogen atoms. No one technique should be treated as the sole proof: the assignment rested on multiple kinds of evidence.
What the compounds could do
The original report also described the Mg(I) compounds acting as reducing agents toward unsaturated substrates. This demonstrated reactivity beyond simply isolating and characterizing the unusual magnesium core.
Rank #2
- LAB GRADE MAGNESIUM CHLORIDE || Highly soluble, hygroscopic salt used in biochemical research, industrial processes, and environmental applications.
- MAGNESIUM ION SOURCE FOR BIOLOGY & CHEMISTRY || Provides Mg²⁺ ions essential for enzymatic reactions, ATP-dependent enzymes, and molecular biology techniques like PCR.
- PRECURSOR FOR MAGNESIUM COMPOUNDS || Converts into magnesium hydroxide (Mg(OH)₂), magnesium oxide (MgO), and magnesium metal; participates in Lewis acid catalysis.
- APPLICATIONS IN ENERGY STORAGE || Investigated for use in magnesium-ion batteries, supercapacitors, and electrolyte formulations to enhance electrochemical performance.
- USES IN MICROBIAL MEDIA & WATER CHEMISTRY || Supports prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell metabolism in growth media and regulates pH and mineral balance in biochemical buffers.
How the 2025 work extends the milestone
A study by Maurer, Mai, Schmidt, Langer and Harder, first published on 17 October 2025, reported isolated and characterized Mg(I) complexes supported by non-nitrogen ligands. Its examples included (BDI*)MgMgCp* and an aryloxide-stabilized complex. The authors reported X-ray diffraction and NMR characterization.
| Work | What it established | Ligand scope and evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Jones, Stasch and colleagues, 2007 | First report of stable Mg(I) compounds, with two Mg(I) centers joined in an Mg22+ unit. | Bulky ligands; crystallography, theoretical chemistry and spectroscopy supported the assignment. |
| Maurer and colleagues, 2025 | Expanded reported Mg(I) chemistry to examples using non-nitrogen ligands. | Included Cp*- and aryloxide-stabilized examples; X-ray diffraction and NMR characterization were reported. |
The later paper also records ligand-exchange limits and unsuccessful attempts to isolate a less sterically protected Cp analogue, which decomposed. That result underscores that the ligand is not merely a label attached to the Mg(I) core: its identity and steric protection matter to whether a complex can be isolated.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What “first Mg(I) complex cracked” means
The headline refers to the first stable Mg(I) compounds reported in 2007, not to a first-ever magnesium compound or to a solitary Mg(I) ion made stable on its own. The defining structural feature was a pair of magnesium centers bonded together, protected by bulky ligands. The 2025 examples are a later expansion of the ligand choices known to support Mg(I), rather than a replacement for the historical 2007 milestone.
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- 25g bottle of magnesium metal ribbon
- Laboratory-grade material for lab and research use
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- Used for demonstrating exothermic reactions
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Sources
- Chemistry World, “First Mg(I) complex cracked” (2007), reporting the original Science paper, DOI: 10.1126/science.1150856.
- Maurer, Mai, Schmidt, Langer and Harder, “A Modular Approach to Asymmetric Mg(I) Complexes Using a Unique Cyclopentadienyl Mg(I) Complex,” Angewandte Chemie International Edition, first published 17 October 2025, DOI: 10.1002/anie.202518538.
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