Electrochemical [3+2] Cycloaddition of Anilines and 1,3‐Dicarbonyl Compounds: Construction of Multisubstituted Indoles

Abstract Indoles, especially multisubstituted ones, are privileged scaffolds found widely in natural products, bioactive molecules, fine chemicals, and organic functional materials. Although several intramolecular electrochemical cyclization reactions of vinyl anilines to construct indoles have been reported in recent years, the intermolecular process between simple anilines and other readily available synthons, even though dominant, remains relatively unexplored. Herein, we report the intermolecular electro‐oxidative cycloaddition of anilines and commercially available 1,3‐dicarbonyl compounds. This method provides an alternative route for the synthesis of a broad range of multisubstituted indoles without a transition‐metal catalyst or external chemical oxidant. magnified image