Chiral superbases: the proton affinities of 1‐ and 2‐aza[6]helicene in the gas phase

Abstract
The proton affinities (PAs) of 1- and 2-azahelicene were determined using various mass spectrometric techniques and complementary results from density functional theory. With PAs of about 1000 kJ mol−1, the helical backbone of both compounds offer promising perspectives for future research on enantioselective reactions of these helical nitrogen bases. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.