Research Projects

The proposed project aims to explore the catalytic potentials of chiral organocatalysts to develop unprecedented asymmetric methodologies for procuring carbo- and heterocyclic 7-membered bridged biaryls, such as dibenzo[c,e]-cycloheptanes, -oxepines, and -azepines. Catalytic asymmetric synthesis has evolved as a vibrant area of research in organic synthesis, with organocatalysis becoming an integral pillar in strengthening stereoselective synthesis. Since the renaissance of organocatalysis, many small organic molecules have been identified and developed as catalysts to promote stereoselective transformations through one or more carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bond-forming reactions. The compatibility of organocatalysts with other catalytic systems such as transition-metal-, photo-redox-, and electro-catalysis can be utilized to develop dual catalytic transformations. Several synthetic methodologies have been probed for the enantioselective construction of five- and six-membered ring structures, but the asymmetric synthesis of 7-membered carbo- and hetero-cyclic frameworks has been less explored. The project aims to develop new organocatalytic intra- and inter-molecular carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom forming reactions and domino reactions for the asymmetric synthesis of 7-membered biaryl rings, such as dibenzo-cycloheptanes, -oxepines, and -azepines bearing multiple stereogenic centers along with a chiral axis. The asymmetric synthesis of these 7-membered biaryl carbo- and heterocycles has been planned by merging chiral organocatalysis with photochemical and electrochemical transformations.