“…[17,19] In contrast, kinetically stabilized B 4 tBu 4 , obtained by reduction of BtBuF 2 or B 2 tBu 2 Cl 2 ,p resents an electron-deficient tetrahedrane structure [20] and can be further reduced to the radical anion [B 4 tBu 4 ]C À ,t he EPR spectrum of which suggests ac lassical butterfly structure. Thel ongest classical oligoboranes isolated to date,l inear B 6 (NMe 2 ) 8 [19] and cyclic B 6 (NR 2 ) 6 (R = Me,E t), [17,23] are only formed as negligible by-products of otherwise unselective reductive coupling reactions.W hile the exact mechanism of these reactions is still unclear, the generation of highly reactive boryl radical and/or borylene intermediates tends to lead to unwanted side-reactions,such as radical hydrogen abstraction from solvent or borylene insertion into CÀHa nd CÀC bonds, [24] as observed, for example,byP ower and co-workers in their attempt to synthesize doubly bonded diborenes stabilized by bulky terphenyl groups (Scheme 2). [22] Despite numerous attempts,n or ational method to predict or control the degree of boron catenation, or the selectivity for classical over non-classical polyboranes,h as been found.…”