| Abstract: | The E and Z geometric isomers of a stable silene (tBu2MeSi)(tBuMe2Si)Si=CH(1‐Ad) ( 1 ) were synthesized and characterized spectroscopically. The thermal Z to E isomerization of 1 was studied both experimentally and computationally using DFT methods. The measured activation parameters for the 1Z ? 1E isomerization are: Ea=24.4 kcal mol?1, ΔH≠=23.7 kcal mol?1, ΔS≠=?13.2 e.u. Based on comparison of the experimental and DFT calculated (at BP86‐D3BJ/def2‐TZVP(‐f)//BP86‐D3BJ/def2‐TZVP(‐f)) activation parameters, the Z?E isomerization of 1 proceeds through an unusual (unprecedented for alkenes) migration–rotation–migration mechanism (via a silylene intermediate), rather than through the classic rotation mechanism common for alkenes. |
