CIDNP has been often utilized as a mechanistic tool for radical reactions. Here, we show that detailed insights into the structure of carbon-centered radical cations with unusual structures, which, otherwise, are hardly detectable, can be obtained. Hydrocarbon cage compounds containing syn-periplanar cyclobutane moieties were oxidized by photoinduced one-electron transfer to chloranil at room temperature in CD 2 Cl 2 . The 1 H CIDNP polarization intensities of geminate radical pairs can be translated into isotropic hyperfine coupling constants and reveal radical cations with remarkable electronic structures. Density functional theory calculations are in line with the experimental results. a "Extended"/"Tight", the data for the tight isomer were determined by fluorescence-detected magnetic resonance [19] . b Only protons clearly distinguishable by different chemical shifts are given. c The number in parenthesis gives the average value for b protons resembling the CIDNP polarization intensities (see text).
CIDNP OF CAGE COMPOUNDS