Fig. 1 Nitrogen binding motifs to transition metals and borylenes. Nitrogen binding motifs to transition metals and borylenes. (A) Simplified schematic of the bonding in well-known end-on-bound transition metal N2 complexes (left) and prospective application to monovalent boron species (BRL) (right, this work). (B) Known photodecarbonylation and ligand binding chemistry of tri- (i and iii) and dicoordinate (ii) borylene species. (C) Outcomes of various reduction reactions of dihaloborane adduct 1, including generation of a transient dicoordinate borylene species (2) and its reaction with dinitrogen. Dip, 2,6-diisopropylphenyl; Dur, 2,3,5,6-tetramethylphenyl. Marc-André Légaré et al. Science 2018;359:896-900 Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works