UC Berkeley

A copper-catalyzed coupling of aryl, heteroaryl, and vinyl iodides with α-silyldifluoroamides is reported. The reaction forms α,α-difluoro-α-aryl amides from electron-rich, electron-poor, and sterically hindered aryl iodides in high yield and tolerates a variety of functional groups. The aryldifluoroamide products can be transformed further to provide access to a diverse array of difluoroalkylarenes, including compounds of potential biological interest.