Recent developments in the homogeneous reduction of dinitrogen by molybdenum and iron

The reduction of gaseous nitrogen is a challenge for industrial, biological and synthetic chemists. Major goals include understanding the formation of ammonia for agriculture, and forming N-C and N-Si bonds for the synthesis of fine chemicals. The iron-molybdenum active site of the enzyme nitrogenase has inspired chemists to explore iron and molybdenum complexes in transformations related to N₂ reduction. This area of research has gained significant momentum, and the past two years have witnessed a number of significant advances in synthetic Fe-N₂ and Mo-N₂ chemistry. Furthermore, the identities of all atoms in the iron-molybdenum cofactor of nitrogenase have finally been elucidated, and the discovery of a carbide has generated new questions and targets for coordination chemists. This Perspective summarizes the recent work on iron and molydenum complexes, and highlights the opportunities for continued research.