Cooperative catalysis by palladium-nickel binary nanocluster for Suzuki-Miyaura reaction of ortho-heterocycle-tethered sterically hindered aryl bromides.

The palladium-nickel binary nanocluster is reported as a new catalyst system for Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling of ortho-heterocycle-tethered sterically hindered aryl bromides. The inferior results obtained with the reported Pd/Ni salts/complexes or individual Pd/Ni nanoparticles as catalyst reveal the cooperative catalytic effect of the Pd and Ni nanoparticles in the Pd-Ni nanocluster. The broad substrate scope with respect to variation of the 2-arylbenzoxazole moiety and boronic acids, which offers a means for diversity generation and catalyst recyclability, marks a distinct advantage.