Enhanced catalytic properties of copper in O- and N-arylation and vinylation reactions, using phosphorus dendrimers as ligands.

Imino pyridine-capped phosphorus dendrimers were found to strongly enhance the catalytic activity of copper in arylations and vinylations of O- and N-nucleophiles. These reactions could indeed be performed under very mild conditions, often the mildest to date. Interestingly, such performances could not be obtained when using the monomeric imino pyridine chelating ligand alone. To the best of our knowledge, this constitutes a rare example of such a positive dendritic effect in the field of organometallic catalysis.