Visible-light-driven catalyst-free C–S cross-coupling of thiol derivatives and aryl halides†

Abstract

A mild, scalable, and high-yielding visible-light-promoted C–S cross-coupling between alkyl thiol derivatives and (hetero)aryl halides without the need for metals, ligands, or photocatalysts is reported, offering advantages over traditional C–S bond forming strategies. The formation of an electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complex is supported by experimental and computational mechanistic studies, which undergoes visible-light-induced charge transfer to initiate C–S bond formation in the absence of a photoredox catalyst.