carbenes · main-group elements · multiple bonds · organosilicon compoundsDespite the impressive progress made in the last decade in the chemistry of multiple-bonded main-group compounds, triple bonds between carbon and its heavier homologues still have the touch of unattainability.[1] Efforts to synthesize stable or even only persistent compounds that feature an E À C triple bond (E = Si, Ge, Sn, Pb) face several principal obstacles. On the one hand, there is the essential reluctance of the heavier elements to engage in multiple bonds. As a result only relatively weak p bonds with small HOMO/ LUMO energy differences are formed and consequently these compounds show extreme reactivity towards addition reactions and nucleophilic and electrophilic attack. This problem has been solved for compounds containing homonuclear EE bonds by using extremely bulky substituents. In addition, heteroleptic EE' bonds are always polarized owing to the different electronegativity of the constituent atoms. Because of the relative high electronegativity of carbon, the polarization of the triple bond is extreme for carbynes, RE CR'. This further increases the reactivity of these compounds and severely complicates their synthesis and isolation.All recent high-level calculations of the [CSiH 2 ] potential energy surface predict that the classical linear silyne 1, the analogue of acetylene, is not at an energy minimum, but that a second-order Jahn-Teller distortion forces it into a trans bent structure 2.[2] This parallels the situation found for disilynes, RSiSiR. The results of the calculations, however, reveal a second important aspect: Silyne 2 is thermodynamically and kinetically unstable, and undergoes unimolecular isomerization to silavinylidene 3. Specifically, trans bent silyne 2 is less stable than monocoordinated silylene 3 by 143 kJ mol À1 and the barrier for the 1,2-H shift which converts 2 into 3, is rather small, merely 21 kJ mol À1