title: Jailbreaking benzene dimers.
abstract: We suggest four new benzene dimers, (C(6)H(6))(2), all featuring one or more cyclohexadiene rings trans-fused to 4- or 6-membered rings. These hypothetical dimers are 50-99 kcal/mol less stable than two benzenes, but have computed activation energies to fragmentation ≥27 kcal/mol. A thorough search of potential escape routes was undertaken, through cyclobutane ring cleavage to 12-annulenes, sigmatropic 1,5-H-shifts, electrocyclic ring-openings of the 6-membered rings, and Diels-Alder dimerizations. Some channels for reaction emerge, but there is a reasonable chance that some of these new benzene dimers can be made.
authors.affiliation: Baker Laboratory, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-1301, United States.
authors.forename: Andrey Yu
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Rogachev
authors.forename: Xiao-Dong
authors.initials: XD
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Roald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hoffmann