Di(2-picolyl)amines as Modular and Robust Ligands for Nickel-Catalyzed C(sp2)–C(sp3) Cross-Electrophile Coupling

Ni-catalyzed aryl-alkyl coupling reactions are reliant on using a limited set of commercially available bidentate nitrogenous ligands to enable the reaction, because noncommercial analogues usually entail challenging syntheses. In this work, di(2-picolyl)amines (DPAs) are explored as an alternative modular ligand class for the nickel-catalyzed aryl-alkyl cross-electrophile coupling. Novel DPA ligands were synthesized directly from inexpensive amine and pyridine building blocks in a single step. This facile synthetic route enabled the parallel synthesis of DPA ligands with varied steric and electronic properties. From this collection of ligands, a few robust ligands for C(sp²)-C(sp³) cross-electrophile coupling were identified and tested in the cross-coupling of a range of diverse molecules, including model examples for late-stage functionalization.