Organic and Organometallic Chemistry

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The Inorganic, Bioinorganic, and Organometallic Chemistry Program supports the efforts of Dr. Robert G. Bergman of the University of California Berkeley to explore new reactions of cobalt-bound nitrosyl groups and alkenes, followed by reactions involving coordinated alkenes and other reagents. These reactions focus specifically on strained and unstrained, unsaturated hydrocarbons, so that the basic characteristics of the reactions can be most clearly elucidated. Reactions of the dinitrosyl-alkene complexes with a range of electrophiles are examined to determine the reaction components (e.g., base, Lewis acid additives) that are required to successfully form the new carbon-carbon bonds between the adducts and the electrophiles. Fundamental studies of the mechanisms of adduct formation, adduct dissociation and carbon-carbon bond forming processes include detailed kinetics and isotope labeling experiments. Particular attention is paid to understanding the role of the Lewis acid and promoter that facilitates these transformations. Parallel to the studies of the cobalt-based systems, Professor Bergman and his group are exploring whether dinitrosyl complexes involving other metals and ligands will engage in analogous chemistries with simple alkenyl derivatives. Computational methods, primarily with density functional theory, are used to predict which systems are likely to undergo reversible dinitrosyl-alkene adduct formation. Undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral students working on this program receive excellent training. Professor Bergman has recently helped to initiate a new curriculum emphasizing science literacy for students in grades 3-5 in the local Alameda County, CA public schools.