Advances of well-defined alkali metal complexes in organic synthesis

Abstract

Alkali metal reagents in organic synthesis are ubiquitous within academia and industry due to the wide array of synthetic utility as bases, nucleophiles, and Lewis acids. While organolithium chemistry has been the most prominent, the development of analogous technologies with the later alkali metals has garnered recent interest. This review aims to develop an introductory primer on well-defined heavier alkali metal complexes and the corresponding contemporary utility in organic synthesis. Key developments will be highlighted from the past decade to provide direct comparison to early fundamental studies, aspiring to provide a template for future advances in the field of alkali metal-mediated methods and catalysis.