Preparation and properties of methylgermylsilanes and some related compounds.

Germane (GeH4), the germanium analog of methane, was first prepared by Voegelen (1) in 1902 by the action of zinc and sulphuric acid on germanium tetrachloride. No further work on the hydrides of germanium was done until 1922 when Muller and Smith (2) studied the preparation of germane with a view to using the hydride in a reaction, similar to the Marsh test, for the detection of minute quantities of germanium. That same year, Paneth and Schmidt-Hebbel (3) produced germane by the reaction of sulphuric acid with a mixture of zinc, magnesium and germanium, and Schenck. (4) obtained germane from the action of acid on magnesium germanide. [...