Visible-Light-Promoted Cascade Radical Trifluoromethylation/Cyclization for the Synthesis of Trifluoromethylated Tricyclic Quinoxalinonyl Compounds

Tricyclic quinoxalinonyl compounds represent an important class of tricyclic fused <i>N</i>-heterocyclic systems widely distributed in pharmaceutical agents and biologically active molecules. Herein, we described a visible-light-induced radical trifluoromethylation/cyclization reaction using cost-effective and readily available CF₃Br as the trifluoromethyl source. This strategy enables, for the first time, the efficient construction of a series of trifluoromethylated tricyclic quinoxalinonyl compounds from <i>N</i>-(isopentenyl)quinoxalin-2(1<i>H</i>)-ones and <i>N</i>-homoallylquinoxalin-2(1<i>H</i>)-ones via radical trifluoromethylation/cyclization. The method features mild reaction conditions and excellent functional group compatibility and can be extended to various fluoroalkyl reagents such as C₆F₁₃Br and C₈F₁₇Br, providing a mild and efficient synthetic approach for introducing diverse fluoroalkyl groups to organic compounds.