A laser photolysis flash study of 2-naphthyl(carbomethoxy)carbene

The laser flash photolysis of methyl 2-diazo(2-naphthyl)acetate at room temperature and at 77 K has been studied. The process produces singlet 2-naphthyl(carbomethoxy)carbene. It takes only 350 ps to 1 ns for the singlet carbene to relax to its lower energy triplet state. The singlet to triplet carbene intersystem crossing occurs faster than the Wolff rearrangement to the corresponding ketene. It has been observed that the carbene produces the ketene and its formation is not dependent on the excited state of the diazo compound.