Visible light initiates the stereoselective formation of two new bonds, a C À C and a C À Si bond, during the addition of acylsilanes to alkynes. At room temperature this photochemically induced transformation can be applied for the preparation of chromone derivatives in a highly atom-economic manner.

Acylsilanes are known to undergo a 1,2-silicon-to-oxygen migration under thermal or photochemical conditions to form siloxycarbenes. However, there are few reports regarding the application of siloxycarbenes in organic synthesis and surprisingly, their reaction with CC double or triple bonds remains virtually unexplored. To facilitate such a study, previously inaccessible aromatic acylsilanes containing an ortho-tethered CC double bond were identified as suitable substrates. To access these key intermediates, we developed a new synthetic method utilizing a rhodium-catalyzed oxidative Heck-type olefination involving the application of an acylsilane moiety as a directing group. When exposed to visible-light irradiation, the ortho-olefinated acylsilanes underwent a smooth intramolecular cyclization process to afford valuable indanone derivatives in quantitative yields. This result paves the way for the development of new transformations involving siloxycarbene intermediates.

Light-induced Brook rearrangements of acylsilanes facilitate silylacylation reactions of electron-deficient internal alkynes. A wide range of aromatic substituents on the acylsilane aryl group are tolerated, affording a series of functionalized enonyl silanes. The presence of electron-withdrawing substituents on the alkyne is crucial for the success of the addition process.

To assess the potential of N-alkynylated sulfoximines as new (chiral) reagents for organic synthesis, their reactivity profile in numerous synthetic processes is under investigation. When reacted with ketenes, the alkynylated-sulfoximines undergo a [2 + 2]-cycloaddition process to afford sulfoximine-functionalized cyclobutenones in excellent yields.

Exposing ortho-amido aroylsilanes to visible light or heat leads to cyclization reactions that provide N-heterocyclic compounds via siloxycarbenes as key intermediates. The previously unreported starting materials have been prepared by directed amidations of aromatic acylsilanes in the presence of an iridium catalyst followed by N-alkylation.