Highly Selective Rhodium Catalyzed Domino C–H Activation/Cyclizations

Abstract

The direct functionalization of carbon–hydrogen bonds is an emerging tool to establish more sustainable and efficient synthetic methods. We present its implementation in a cascade reaction that provides a rapid assembly of functionalized indanylamines from simple and readily available starting materials. Careful choice of the ancillary ligand – an electron-rich bidentate phosphine ligand – enables highly diastereoselective rhodium(I)- catalyzed intramolecular allylations of unsubstituted ketimines induced by a directed C–H bond activation and allene carbo-metalation sequence.