The base-catalyzed rearrangement of arylindenols is a rare example of a suprafacial [1,3]-hydrogen atom transfer. The mechanism has been proposed to proceed via sequential [1,5]-sigmatropic shifts, which occur in a selective sense and avoid an achiral intermediate. A computational analysis using quantum chemistry casts serious doubt on these suggestions: these pathways have enormous activation barriers and in constrast to what is observed experimentally, they overwhelmingly favor a racemic product. Instead we propose that a suprafacial [1,3]-prototopic shift occurs in a two-step deprotonation/reprotonation sequence. This mechanism is favored by 15 kcal mol<sup>-1</sup> over that previously proposed. Most importantly, this is also consistent with stereospecificity since reprotonation occurs rapidly on the same p-face. We have used explicitly-solvated molecular dynamics studies to study the persistence and condensed-phase dynamics of the intermediate ion-pair formed in this reaction. Chirality transfer is the result of a particularly resilient contact ion-pair, held together by electrostatic attraction and a critical NH···p interaction which ensures that this species has an appreciable lifetime even in polar solvents such as DMSO and MeOH.
Coexistence of ion pairs and molecular associates in the nanoparticles of inorganic compounds