A new bridged ligand incorporating the hexamethylindenyl moiety has been synthesized and usedto prepare the corresponding ansa ferrocene, [Fe(
5-C
9Me
6)(
5-C
5H
4)SiMe
2],
10, which is the first mixed-ring[1]ferrocenophane to be structurally characterized. Comparison of the crystal structure of
10 with those of [Fe(
5-C
5H
4)
2SiMe
2],
1, and
rac-[Fe(
5-C
9Me
6)
2SiMe
2],
5a,shows many structural features, such as the ring tilt of17
![](/images/entities/deg.gif)
, to be intermediate between those of the two modelcompounds, while the average Si-C(ipso) bond lengthis much closer to that in
5a.