KEMV1193 CH1: Current Trends in Ligand Design for Inorganic and Organometallic Chemistry (JSS30) (2 cr)

The course will focus on the design, synthesis and tuning of ligands with the purpose of achieving specific properties in the homogeneous inorganic and organometallic materials incorporating them. It will start by reviewing the main classes of simple N, O, C and P-donor ligands and their properties, as well as the metrics and methods used to characterize them. Subsequently, the incorporation of these moieties into more complex, polydentate ligand architectures will be discussed, highlighting the advantages provided by these systems. Application-driven properties such as chirality, redox non-innocence, photoactivity, ambiphilicity, and cooperativity or ligand-assisted reactivity will be discussed. Finally, the evolution of ligand design in specific applications such as hydrogenation, olefin polymerization, olefin metathesis, C-C and C-N cross-coupling, dinitrogen activation, enantioselective synthesis, carbon dioxide reduction, molecular magnetism, and metal-organic frameworks, will be presented.

The course will aim to provide the tools for understanding the principles of ligand development and to familiarize the participant with the current trends in this perennial yet fast-moving research area.

M.Sc. or equivalent in chemistry, as well as final year undergraduate students are welcomed to participate in the course.