Palladium-Catalyzed Formation of N-Heteroarenes from Nitroarenes using Molybdenum Hexacarbonyl as the Source of Carbon Monoxide

The development of a method that employs a two-chamber reaction vessel and uses molybdenum hexacarbonyl [Mo(CO)(6)] as the carbon monoxide (CO) source for the palladium-catalyzed transformation of nitroarenes into indoles or imidazoles is reported. The scope and limitations of our method are illustrated with 23 examples. Experiments that indicate the mechanism of the C-H bond amination reaction to be stepwise are also reported.