A dinuclear Co(ii) complex supported by a modular, tunable redox-active ligand system is capable of selective C–H amination to form indolines from aryl azides in good yields at low (1 mol%) catalyst loading.

Cobalt Catalyzed sp 3 C-H Amination Utilizing Aryl Azides. -A dinuclearCo(II) complex is capable of selective C-H amination to form indolines from aryl azides at low catalyst loading. The reaction is tolerant of medicinally relevant heterocycles, such as pyridine and indole, and can be used to form 5-, 6-, and 7-membered rings. The synthetic versatility obtained using low loadings of an earth abundant transition metal complex represents a significant advance in catalytic C-H amination technology. -(VILLANUEVA, O.; WELDY, N. M.; BLAKEY*, S. B.; MACBETH, C. E.; Chem. Sci. 6 (2015) 11, 6672-6675, http://dx.