Heck Arylation of α,β‐Unsaturated Aldehydes

The Heck arylation of α,β‐unsaturated aldehydes is strongly dependent on the catalyst, the solvent and the base. Optimized conditions yielded either selectively cinnamyl derivatives (83%) or double arylation products (88% based on aryl conversion). A new α‐arylation of β,β‐disubstituted acrolein is also realized.