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Catalysis

Dual catalysis at the flick of a switch

Nature volume 519, pages 42–43 (2015)Cite this article

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A combination of two catalysts — one of which is light-activated — has been used to promote new chemical reactivity, opening up fresh opportunities for the synthesis of structurally complex organic molecules. See Letter p.74

Difficulties can arise when developing reactions for the production of pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals and materials if the chemical properties of the reaction components enable undesired products to form. Suppression of side reactions can therefore be just as important a consideration as how to obtain the synthetic target. Catalysis allows chemists to circumvent side products by inducing otherwise unreactive compounds to become selectively reactive. Even more control over reaction outcomes can be gained if reactivity can be induced by the flick of a light switch. On page 74 of this issue, Cuthbertson and MacMillan1 report their use of visible-light-mediated catalysis to induce atypical activity of reaction substrates, initiating a complex transformation of otherwise unreactive components.

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Figure 1: Light-activated arylation of allylic carbon–hydrogen bonds.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. James J. Devery III and Corey R. J. Stephenson are in the Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA.,

    James J. Devery III & Corey R. J. Stephenson

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  1. James J. Devery III
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  2. Corey R. J. Stephenson
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Correspondence to Corey R. J. Stephenson.

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Devery, J., Stephenson, C. Dual catalysis at the flick of a switch. Nature 519, 42–43 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/519042a

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