The chemistry of endo-tricyclo[6.2.1.0 (2.7)]undec-9-en-11-ylidene (10), an archetypal foiled carbene, has been investigated. The intermolecular reactions of 10 are most conveniently performed with oxadiazoline 6 because the corresponding diazirine can be obtained only in very low yield. Furthermore, the aziridinyl imine is difficult to decompose and the tosylhydrazone sodium salt poorly soluble in common organic solvents. Photolysis of 6 in diethylamine leads merely to a reduction of the diazo group and regeneration of acetyl hydrazone 5, whereas thermolysis cleanly affords tertiary amine 12(anti) in 77% yield. Calculations show that even stabilized-nucleophilic carbenes react with amines through an ylidic pathway and not by a concerted insertion into the N-H bond. Nevertheless, in the gas phase, norbornen-7-ylidene (13) is predicted to be stabilized by one molecule of NH3 more efficiently through a hydrogen bond than by ylide formation.

[structure: see text] Inclusion of achiral carbene precursor endo-8-azibicyclo[3.2.1]octan-3-ol (1) in chiral beta-cyclodextrin (7-Cy) and tri-O-methyl-beta-cyclodextrin (TRIMEB) leads to 1:1 complexes 1@7-Cy and 1@TRIMEB, respectively. The combined methods of induced circular dichroism, NMR spectroscopy, and X-ray structure determination were employed for the first time for structural elucidation of the complexes in solution and the solid state. Significantly different orientations of 1 were observed. Compared with 1@7-Cy, 1@TRIMEB exhibits a different guest orientation and an association constant one-twentieth lower.

Two achiral diazirines 1a and 1b have been encapsulated in the inherently chiral cavity of α-cyclodextrin (6-Cy), β-cyclodextrin (7-Cy) and permethylated β-cyclodextrin (TRIMEB) and photolyzed. Because of supramolecular photochirogenesis the generated carbenes afford intramolecular C-H insertion products not as a racemate but one enantiomer is slightly favored. With 1a@(6-Cy) 2 the ee of product 7a is doubled. To the best of our knowledge for the first time for carbene

Foiled carbene structures comprising strong stabilizing interactions between the divalent carbon and the intramolecular double bond have been located by DFT calculations. These tetracyclic species bearing fused five-membered rings impeding intramolecular rearrangements are theoretically predicted to lie in a deep potential energy well. A suitable dibromocyclopropane precursor for this type of foiled carbene has been prepared in 12 steps. Its treatment with methyllithium led to the isolation of a product of a formal carbene dimerization, a bicyclopropylidene.

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