Readily available phosphine–imine ligands from α-phenylethylamine for highly efficient Pd-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation

A series of novel chiral phosphine–imine ligands have been prepared by a two-step transformation from chiral α-phenylethylamine. The resulting chiral ligands were found to be effective for the palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation of 1,3-diphenylprop-2-en-1-yl pivalate with dimethyl malonate, in which up to 94% ee and 99% conversions were obtained. The results demonstrate that the chirality resided on the chelate ring of P–Pd–N complex is more effective for the transfer of the stereochemical information by comparison with the result obtained by Hashimoto and coworkers’ phosphine–imine ligand, in which the chirality lay in the outside of P–Pd–N chelate ring. The effect of solvent, base and substitutent in phosphine–imine ligand on this catalytic reaction is also described.