Direct Access to Cobaltacycles via C-H Activation: N-Chloroamide-Enabled Room-Temperature Synthesis of Heterocycles.

Cobaltacycle synthesis via C-H activation has been achieved for the first time, providing key mechanistic insight into cobalt catalytic chemistry. N-Chloroamides are used as a directing synthon for cobalt-catalyzed room-temperature C-H activation and construction of heterocycles. Alkynes as coupling partners allow convenient access to isoquinolones, a class of synthetically and pharmaceutically important compounds. The broad substrate scope enables a diverse range of substitution patterns to be incorporated into the heterocyclic scaffold.