Unveiling a flip-over retention mechanism in the gas-phase Cl − + (CH 3 ) 3 CI S N 2 reaction
Roland Wester
Nature Communications, Published online: 01 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-72121-4 Bimolecular nucleophilic substitution is a fundamental reaction in organic chemistry. Here, the authors uncover a “flip-over” retention mechanism for the SN2 pathway of Cl− + (CH3)3CI from molecular cross beam experiments and dynamics simulations.