Tetraarylethylenes from Diarylmethanones and Hexachlorodisilane: The “Sila‐McMurry” Reaction

Hexachlorodisilane reacts with diarylmethanones (aryl=C 6 H 5 , 4‐MeC 6 H 4 , 4‐ t BuC 6 H 4 , 4‐ClC 6 H 4 , 4‐BrC 6 H 4 ) to furnish the corresponding tetraarylethylenes in good yields. The reductive conversion requires temperatures of about 160 °C and reaction times of 60–72 h. In the initial step, the Lewis‐basic carbonyl groups likely generate low‐valent [SiCl 2 ] as an analogue of [TiCl 2 ] in the classical McMurry reaction. The coupling sequence further proceeds via benzopinacolones, which have been isolated as key intermediates.