A new biarylphosphine ligand for the Pd-catalyzed synthesis of diaryl ethers under mild conditions.

A new bulky biarylphosphine ligand (L8) has been developed that allows the Pd-catalyzed C-O cross-coupling of a wide range of aryl halides and phenols under milder conditions than previously possible. A direct correlation between the size of the ligand substituents in the 2', 4', and 6' positions of the nonphosphine containing ring and the reactivity of the derived catalyst system was observed. Specifically, the rate of coupling increased with the size of these substituents.