Catalytic enantioselective oxidative cross-coupling of benzylic ethers with aldehydes.

The first one-pot enantioselective oxidative coupling of cyclic benzylic ethers with aldehydes has been developed. A variety of benzylic ethers were transformed into the corresponding oxygen heterocycles with high enantioselectivity. Mechanistic experiments were conducted to determine the nature of the reaction intermediates. The application of this strategy to coupling reactions with other nucleophiles besides aldehydes was also explored.