Tetrahedral to Octahedral Nickel(II) as an Initiation Step in Metallaphotoredox Catalysis

In this work we seek to understand the pre-catalystic initiation steps between two metallaphotoredox catalysts Ir(III) ((Ir[dF(CF3)ppy]2}(dtbbpy))PF6) and Ni(II) ((4,4'-dtbbpy)NiCl2) using a combination of X-ray and optical spectroscopies. We observe two steps: first, photoexcitation produces the expected intramolecular oxidation of Ir(III) to Ir(IV)(dtbbpy)- correlated to the Ir metal-to-ligand charge transfer state, rather than Ir(II) which is often reported in literature. Second, the 4-coordinate Ni(II) starting species evolves to a 6-coordinate Ni(II) species after oxidation by Ir(IV)(dtbbpy)-. We conclude by proposing the identity of the 6-coordinate Ni(II) species and its potential importance in the pre-mechanistic step prior to Ni entering the catalytic cycle. This neglected 6-coordinate Ni(II) intermediate could help to unravel the poorly understood initiation step in these metallaphotoredox C_sp3-C_sp2 cross-coupling reactions.