Selective transformations of organic compounds mediated by transition metal complexes

ORGN 304

Robert G. Bergman, rbergman@berkeley.edu, Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, 691 Tan, Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720
Many stoichiometric and catalytic reactions are now known in which organotransition metal complexes mediate the synthesis of new organic compounds. These processes have been used in both industrial and academic chemistry to convert simple organic compounds into more complex functionalized materials, in some cases with high degrees of regio- and stereoselectivity. Mechanistic studies have played an important part in bringing us to the current understanding of these processes, providing rational ways to improve them, and guiding the development of new methods. This lecture will describe the search for new examples of fundamental primary organometallic reactions and studies of the mechanisms of these processes. The content of the lecture will be chosen from exploratory and mechanistic studies that have been carried out most recently. These are focused on activation of C-H bonds in alkanes and other organic compounds by cationic coordinatively unsaturated metal centers and catalytic and stoichiometric cycloaddition reactions of unsaturated organic compounds with complexes bearing metal-nitrogen bonds.