Fischer carbene
Quick Summary
Fischer carbenes are a type of organometallic compound featuring a metal-carbon double bond, specifically a metal-carbene bond. These compounds were first synthesized in the laboratory of German chemist Ernst O. Fischer.1
Carbenes, in general, are highly reactive molecules containing a carbon atom with only two bonds, leaving two valence electrons available. This makes them transient intermediates in many chemical reactions. Fischer carbenes are characterized by the metal being bonded to the carbene carbon, and they can be modified by electron-rich groups. The electronegativity of the metals in Fischer carbenes makes the carbene carbon electron-poor, allowing it to react with electron-rich reagents like amines.21
Fischer carbenes are useful in organic synthesis, for example, in the creation of naphthyl compounds through reactions with alkynes.1
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