DATE2024.09.26 #Press Releases

Scientists discover a single-electron bond in a carbon-based compound

—The discovery of a stable single-electron covalent bond between two carbon atoms validates a century-old theoryshape— 

Summary

Researchers led by Takuya Shimajiri (at the time of research: Hokkaido University, currently: project assistant professor at the University of Tokyo) and Associate Professor Yusuke Ishigaki of Hokkaido University have made the first-ever observation of a stable, single-electron carbon-carbon covalent bond. This type of single-electron sigma bond was hypothesized in the early 1930s by none other than the Nobel laureate Linus Pauling. A few observations have been made since then, but never in carbon or hydrogen. The team of researchers achieved this breakthrough by oxidating a derivative of hexaphenylethane in the presence of iodine. They studied the resulting crystals using X-ray diffraction analysis and confirmed the presence of the covalent bond by Raman spectroscopy, a form of chemical analysis. The discovery deepens our understanding of chemical bonding theories and provides further insights into chemical reactions. The findings were published in the journal Nature.

Figure：Structure of the compound highlighting the C–C one-electron sigma bond (red). (Takuya Shimajiri, et al. Nature. September 25, 2024)

Please visit Hokkaido University’s website for the full press release.

Journal

Journal name	Nature
Title of paper	Direct evidence for a carbon–carbon one-electron σ-bond