Enantioselective Synthesis of Tetra-<i>ortho</i>-Substituted Axially Chiral Biaryls through Rhodium-Catalyzed Double [2 + 2 + 2] Cycloaddition

Abstract

[reaction: see text] We have established an enantioselective synthesis of both C2 symmetric and unsymmetric tetra-ortho-substituted axially chiral biaryls through rhodium-catalyzed double [2 + 2 + 2] cycloaddition (up to >99% ee). This method serves as an attractive new route to enantioenriched tetra-ortho-substituted axially chiral biaryls in view of the one-step access to substrate diynes and tetraynes starting from readily available alkynes.