Palladium‐Catalyzed Cascade Reaction of o‐Bromobenzaldehydes with N‐Sulfonylhydrazones: An Efficient Approach to the Naphthalene Skeleton.

A new strategy for the construction of the naphthalene backbone is described. The reaction essentially starts from two simple aldehydes. The key step is enabled by a palladium‐carbene migratory insertion. After that, a sequence of reversible allylic alkylation and intramolecular condensation takes place to give the substituted naphthalene derivatives. Additional manipulations on the sulfonyl group in the product via palladium‐catalyzed Kumada coupling were also investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]