Herein, we develop a photocatalytic 4 + 1 annulation of vinyl aziridines with alkyl halides. The reaction appears to experience radical trigger kinetically favored β-scission of the vinyl aziridine C-N bond, generating transient nitrogen-centered radical, followed by sequential single electron oxidation, 5-exo-trig cyclization, and protonation. Significantly, an unprecedented annulation mode in which vinyl aziridines serve as four-atom synthons has been disclosed.
Wang et al. (Mon,) studied this question.