Transition metal-catalyzed decomposition of phenyliodonium and diphenylsulfonium ylides was investigated with regard to application in asymmetric carbenoid reactions. Phenyliodonium ylides react in the presence of Rh(II) catalysts with the same selectivity in inter-and intramolecular cyclopropanations as the corresponding diazo compounds, and intramolecular CH insertions proceed with identical enantioselectivities. With diphenylsulfonium ethoxycarbonylmethylide the Cu(I)-catalyzed cyclopropanation of olefins affords trans/cis ratios and asymmetric inductions identical with those of diazo compounds, but with Rh(II) catalysts some small, although significant, selectivity variations occur, which are ascribed to coordination of diphenyl sulfide to one of the coordination sites of the catalyst.
CARBENOID REACTIONS WITH PHENYLIODO-NIUM YLIDES
Synthesis and thermal, and photochemical decomposition of phenyliodonium ylidesThe chemistry of phenyliodonium ylides has been pioneered by Neilands. 15 The ylides (4) are synthesized by heating activated methylene compounds (1) with iodosylbenzene (2) in chloroform. Other procedures use iodosylbenzene and acetic anhydride 16 or diacetoxyiodosylbenzene (3) in MeOH in the presence of KOH at À5 to 0°C. 17 This latter method of Schank 17 is the method of choice. It is, however, limited to ylides such as 4 carrying two electron-withdrawing substituents, such as carbonyl,