A Visible‐Light Promoted Amine Oxidation Catalyzed by a Cp*Ir Complex

Through a rapid screening of Cp*Ir complexes based on a turn‐on type fluorescence readout, a [Cp*Ir(dipyrido[3,2‐a : 2’,3’‐c]phenazine)Cl]+ complex was found to catalyze the blue‐light promoted dehydrogenation of N‐heterocycles under physiological conditions. In the dehydrogenation of tetrahydroisoquinolines, the catalyst preferentially yielded the monodehydrogenated product, accompanying H2O2 generation. We surmise that this mechanism may be reminiscent of flavin‐dependent oxidases.
Photocatalytic amine oxidation: The visible‐light promoted dehydrogenation of N‐heterocycles is catalyzed by [Cp*Ir(dipyrido[3,2‐a : 2’,3’‐c]phenazine)Cl]+ under physiological conditions. In the dehydrogenation of tetrahydroisoquinolines, the catalyst preferentially yielded the monodehydrogenated product, accompanying H2O2 generation. We surmise that this mechanism may be reminiscent of flavin‐dependent oxidases.