Redox-Tag Processes: Intramolecular Electron Transfer and Its Broad Relationship to Redox Reactions in General

Explosive growth in the use of open shell reactivity, including neutral radicals and radical ions, in the field of synthetic organic chemistry has been observed in the past decade, particularly since the advent of ruthenium complexes in 2008. These complexes generally induce single-electron transfer (SET) processes via visible-light absorption. Additionally, recent significant advancements in organic electrochemistry involving SET processes to provide open shell reactivity offer a complementary method to traditional polarity-driven reactions described by two-electron transfer processes. In this Review, we highlight the importance of intramolecular SET processes in the field of synthetic organic chemistry, which seem to be more elusive than the intermolecular versions, since they are net redox-neutral and thus cannot simply be regarded as oxidations or reductions. Such intramolecular SET processes can rationally be understood in combination with concomitant bond formations and/or cleavages, and are regulated by a structural motif that we call a redox tag. In order to describe modern radical-driven reactions involving SET processes, we focus on a classical formalism in which electrons are treated as particles rather than waves, which offers a practical yet powerful approach to explain and/or predict synthetic outcomes.