Palladium-Catalysed Synthesis of Stereodefined Cyclobutenes

Abstract

The relevance of four-membered-ring substructures in organic synthesis is undeniable, and well reflected by the breadth of synthetic approaches to cyclobutanes reported in the literature. As comparatively more versatile synthetic intermediates, cyclobutenes have been the object of fewer studies. This account briefly reviews those prior reports and highlights a recent breakthrough in the ­stereoselective, atom-economical, and direct preparation of ­cyclobutenes through an intriguing combination of photochemistry and metal catalysis.

Key words

cyclobutenes - palladium - stereoselective synthesis - ­rearrangement - atom economy

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18

For ease of purification, most of the crude acids 3 were routinely converted into the corresponding methyl esters.

20

The structure was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray analysis.