Aerobic Cu-catalyzed oxidative 1 : 2 coupling of benzynes with terminal alkynes.

Cu-Catalyzed oxidative 1 : 2 couplings of arynes with nucleophilic terminal alkynes under aerobic conditions are described herein. A mechanistic investigation revealed a plausible involvement of an aryl-Cu(iii)-generating pathway. By this method, ubiquitous arenediynes can be efficiently assembled in a single step under mild conditions.