Bis[μ-N-(diethyl-amino-κN)dimethyl-silylanilido-κN:N]bis-[chlorido-cobalt(II)].

In the title binuclear Co(II) complex, [Co(2)(C(12)H(21)N(2)Si)(2)Cl(2)], an inversion center is located at the mid-point between the two Co atoms in the dimeric mol-ecule. The bidentate N-silylated anilide ligand coordinates the Co(II) atom in an N,N'-chelating mode and provides the anilide N atom as a bridge to link two Co(II) atoms. The two ends of the N-Si-N chelating unit exhibit different affinities for the metal atom. The Co-N(anilide) bond is 2.031 (6) Å and Co-N(amino) bond is 2.214 (6) Å. The four-coordinate Co atom presents a distorted tetra-hedral geometry, while the dimeric aggregation exhibits a (CoN)(2) rhombus core with 1.998 (6) Å as the shortest sides and shows a ladder structure composed of Co, N and Si atoms.