Rhodium-catalyzed oxidative C-H/C-H cross-coupling of aniline with heteroarene: N-nitroso group enabled mild conditions.

The development of transition metal-catalyzed oxidative C-H/C-H cross-coupling between two (hetero)arenes to forge aryl-heteroaryl motifs under mild conditions is an appealing yet challenging task. Herein, we disclose a rhodium-catalyzed oxidative C-H/C-H cross-coupling reaction of an N-nitrosoaniline with a heteroarene under mild conditions. The judicious choice of the N-nitroso group as a directing group enables heightened reactivity. The coupled products could be transformed expediently to (2-aminophenyl)heteroaryl skeletons.