Ir‐catalyzed Asymmetric Hydrogenation of α‐Imino Esters with Chiral Ferrocenylphosphine‐Phosphoramidite Ligands

An Ir‐catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of α‐imino esters with unsymmetrical hybrid chiral ferrocenylphosphine‐phosphoramidite ligands for the synthesis of optically active α‐aryl glycines has been described. The result indicated that the presence of the iodo‐substitutent at the 3/3’‐position of the binaphthyl unit of ligand could significantly improve the catalytic performance. This method features high asymmetric induction and reasonable functional group tolerance, thus providing a concise and efficient approach toward chiral α‐aryl glycine derivatives with up to 96% ee. magnified image