Transition Metal Catalysis & C-H Activation
Our focus in this area is on the use of organosilicon-derived directing groups for C-H functionalisation processes such as olefination, allylation and hydroarylation. To achieve such transformations we are exploring the use of a variety of rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and cobalt-based catalytic systems.
Photochemistry
Synthetic photochemistry employs light irradiation to electronically excite molecules, which leads to novel activation modes, reactive intermediates and mechanistic pathways. Our focus in this area is the use of light to drive chemical reactions using two different approaches: (A) photons absorbed by photosensitisers that can subsequently activate reactants through energy transfer or electron transfer processes; and (B) photons absorbed by the reactants, whereby specific functional groups such as acyl silanes can be directly excited to generate reactive carbene intermediates.