Carbocation Structure and Stability

Carbocations are reactive carbon species formed during some nucleophilic substitution and elimination reactions. They are electron-deficient intermediates, with the central carbon holding only six electrons and three bonded atoms. Because they are short-lived and highly reactive, they play an important role in many organic r...

In a nucleophilic substitution reaction, when the heterolytic cleavage of the bond between the carbon and the leaving group occurs, the leaving group takes the electron pair with it, leaving the carbon center with a positive charge. This electron-deficient substrate is called a carbocation.

In a carbocation, the carbon atom is surrounded ...