Beginning as chemical curiosities with the pioneering work of Curtius, 1a Staudinger, 1b and
even earlier efforts, 1c carbenes have played an important role as transient intermediates …

In the investigation of efficient chemical transformations, the carbon-carbon bond-forming
reactions play an outstanding role. In this context, organocatalytic processes have achieved …

The chemistry of heterocyclic carbenes has experienced a rapid development over the last
years. In addition to the imidazolin‐2‐ylidenes, a large number of cyclic diaminocarbenes …

Abstract Discovered in 2005, cyclic (alkyl)(amino) carbenes (CAACs) are among the most
nucleophilic (σ donating) and also electrophilic (π‐accepting) stable carbenes known to …

The success of homogeneous catalysis can be attributed largely to the development of a
diverse range of ligand frameworks that have been used to tune the behavior of various …

Carbenes, thought of only as transient species for a long time, have become ubiquitous in
organometallic chemistry. Their interaction with a metal center, which allows for their …

The coenzyme thiamine (vitamin B1), a natural thiazolium salt, is involved in many
enzymatic catalyses. Since it has been proposed that the catalytically active species of these …

Preparation, Structure, and Reactivity of 1, 3, 4-Triphenyl-4, 5-dihydro-1H-1, 2, 4-triazol-5-
ylidene, a New Stable Carbene.

This personal account summarizes our work, beginning with the discovery of the first stable
carbene in 1988 up until the recent isolation of mesoionic carbenes. It explains why we have …

Carbenes are neutral compounds featuring a divalent carbon atom. Their rich reactivity both
as naked species and within complexes of transition metals has allowed for spectacular …