Editing Nitrene (section)

{{short description|Molecule containing a nitrogen atom with four unbonded electrons (:Ṅ·)}}
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[[File:Nitrene triplet.svg|thumb|115px|right|The generic structure of a nitrene group]]

In [[chemistry]], a '''nitrene''' or '''imene''' ({{chem2|R\s:Ṅ*}}) is the [[nitrogen]] analogue of a [[carbene]]. The nitrogen atom is uncharged and [[valence (chemistry)#monovalent|monovalent]],<ref>{{GoldBookRef|file=N04145|title=nitrenes}}</ref> so it has only 6 [[electron]]s in its valence level—two [[covalent bond]]ed and four non-bonded electrons. It is therefore considered an [[electrophile]] due to the [[octet rule|unsatisfied octet]]. A nitrene is a [[reactive intermediate]] and is involved in many [[chemical reaction]]s.<ref>{{cite book|editor-first=W. |editor-last=Lwowski |title=Nitrenes |date=1970 |publisher=Interscience |location=New York}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=C. |last=Wentrup |title=Reactive Intermediates |date=1984 |publisher=Wiley |location=New York}}</ref> The simplest nitrene, HN, is called [[imidogen]], and that term is sometimes used as a synonym for the nitrene class.<ref>{{GoldBookRef|file=I02951|title=imidogens}}</ref>