Development of NHC organocatalysts for extreme photoreduction (ANR CASPI project) Internship Offer (Master’s level – Organic Chemistry / Catalysis)

Scientific context

Photoredox catalysis provides elegant solutions in organic synthesis for the reductive activation of inert substrates under mild conditions.[1] However, traditional photocatalysts remain limited by the reducing power of their excited states (> –2 V vs. SCE).

The ANR CASPI project aims to implement the ConPET strategy (Consecutive Photo-induced Electron Transfer) to generate highly reducing anionic photocatalysts within N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) chemistry. NHC organocatalysts have recently been applied to diverse reductive radical transformations.[2] Our preliminary results show that visible-light irradiation can expand their reactivity to challenging, previously inaccessible substrates.

Internship objectives

The goal is to explore the potential of new free redox-active NHCs in extreme photoreductive catalysis.

The intern will:

-  Optimize the conditions for generating and activating these NHCs,

-  Apply them to the reduction of a variety of substrates,

- Conduct experiments under inert atmosphere (glovebox) and under photoactivation (UV-visible lamps).

Perspectives

This internship is the first step of a broader research project. A PhD fellowship is secured starting in September 2026.