Visible-Light-Induced Redox Reactions by Ruthenium Photoredox Catalyst

Photoredox catalysis by well-known ruthenium(II) polypyridine complexes is a versatile tool for redox reactions in synthetic organic chemistry, because they can effectively catalyze single-electron-transfer (SET) processes by irradiation with visible light. These favorable properties of the catalysts provide a new strategy for efficient and selective radical reactions. Salts of tris(2,2'-bipyridine) ruthenium (II), [Ru(bpy)(3)](2+), were first reported in 1936. Since then, a number of works related to artificial photosynthesis and photofunctional materials have been reported, but only limited efforts had been devoted to synthetic organic chemistry. Remarkably, since 2008, this photocatalytic system has gained importance in redox reactions. In this chapter, we will present a concise review of seminal works on ruthenium photoredox catalysis around 2008, which will be followed by our recent research topics on trifluoromethylation of alkenes by photoredox catalysis.