Photocontrolled Cobalt Hydride Catalysis

• Applicant: Professor Christopher Teskey, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: Organic Molecular Chemistry - Synthesis and Characterisation
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 491117731

The combination of photochemistry with transition metals can enable new modes of catalysis, offering innovative and more efficient routes to essential chemicals. However, to date, little attention has been paid to developing transition metal catalysed reactions where the function of the catalyst can be changed by light. The aim of this project is to develop new cobalt catalysed reductive transformations where the selectivity can be controlled solely by visible light. By modifying the coordination sphere of the complex using a light switch, we will be able to bias the mechanism down two different pathways, allowing the development of on-demand, site-selective transformations of complex molecules.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants