Twinning by merohedry in bis(4-methoxyphenyl)tellurium(IV) diiodide dimethyl sulfoxide hemisolvate.

Green crystals of the title compound, C(14)H(14)I(2)O(2)Te x 0.5 C(2)H(6)OS, space group P3(2), show twinning by merohedry (class II). The asymmetric unit contains two organotellurium molecules and one dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) molecule. The crystal structure displays secondary Te...I and Te...O(DMSO) bonds that lead to (4-MeOC(6)H(4))(2)TeI(2) x DMSO supramolecular units in which the two independent organotellurium molecules are bridged by the DMSO O atom. In addition to these secondary bonds, I...I interactions link translationally equivalent organotellurium molecules to form nearly linear ...I-Te-I...I-Te-I... chains. These chains are crosslinked, forming two-dimensional arrays parallel to (001). The crystal packing consists of a stacking of these sheets, which are related by the 3(2) axis. This study describes an unusual dimeric arrangement of X-Te-X groups.