Minisci C–H Alkylation of Heterocycles with Unactivated Alkyl Iodides Enabled by Visible Light Photocatalysis

In this work, we developed a general catalytic strategy that allows Minisci C–H alkylation of a variety of heterocycles using unactivated alkyl halide as an alkyl radical source under visible light photocatalysis. Mild reaction conditions, employing 4CzIPN as an organophotocatalyst and aerial oxygen as a green terminal oxidant, a broad scope, good functional group tolerance, and late-stage C–H alkylation of bioactive and pharmaceutically relevant molecules are advantages of the protocol. Preliminary mechanistic studies indicate the involvement of the α-amino alkyl radical and the alkyl radical and further involvement of aerial oxygen under our reaction conditions.