Steric effects in conjugated systems: II. 2,3-Dimethylbutadiene

Based on earlier results of conformational analysis by the Wiberg method¹ of monosubstituted methylbutadienes, analogous calculations for 2,3-dimethylbutadiene have been carried out. Contrary to the opinion of Aten et al.² who assumed almost free rotation, the molecule was shown to exhibit a considerable strain which hinders the rotation of methyl groups and lengthens the C_sp²-C_sp² bond compared with the length of the central bond in butadiene. The calculated lengthening agrees qualitatively with that obtained by electron diffraction¹.