A New Route to Fused Aromatic Compounds by Using a Palladium-Catalyzed Alkylation - Alkenylation Sequence

A Pd-catalyzed sequence of aromatic substitution and intramolecular Heck reaction of iodoaryl compounds provides the basis for a new strategy for the synthesis of fused benzocarbocycles [Eq. (1)]. Six- and seven-membered carbocycles were generated in 25 – 93 % yield, depending on the nature of the ortho-alkyl substituent R.