Thiocarbonyl ylides thiophene derivatives

In the absence of a dipolarophile, thiocarbonyl ylide 84 undergoes a 1,4-hydrogen shift to give the naphthoannelated thiophene derivative 85. Many examples of related syntheses have been reported (139-143). The photolysis of tetraarylthiiranes in the presence of tetracyanoethene represents an approach to tetrahydrothiophenes via a SET mechanism (75,76). 

Reaction with acetylenic dipolarophiles represents an efficient method for the preparation of 2,5-dihydrothiophenes. These products can be either isolated or directly converted to thiophene derivatives by dehydration procedures. The most frequently used dipolarophile is dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate (DMAD), which easily combines with thiocarbonyl ylides generated by the extrusion of nitrogen from 2,5-dihydro-1,3,4-thiadiazoles (8,25,28,36,41,92,94,152). Other methods involve the desilylation (31,53,129) protocol as well as the reaction with 1,3-dithiolium-4-olates and l,3-thiazolium-4-olates (153-158). Cycloaddition of (S)-methylides formed by the N2-extrusion or desilylation method leads to stable 2,5-dihydrothiophenes of type 98 and 99. In contrast, bicyclic cycloadducts of type 100 usually decompose to give thiophene (101) or pyridine derivatives (102) (Scheme 5.37). 

The corresponding photocyclization of S-arylvinyl sulfides to dihydro-thiophens has been shown to proceed via short-lived thiocarbonyl ylide intermediates, formed in turn by cyclization of triplet excited states. 1-Phenylthio-3,4-dihydronaphthalene (49), for example, affords the colored thiocarbonyl ylide (50)44 the isolated products are derived by processes involving hydrogen abstraction and migration. The greater efficiency of the photocyclization of 2-thioaryloxyenones (51) to dihydrothiophens (52) has been attributed to the additional stabilization afforded to the ylide (53) by the carbonyl group.45 Other similar photocyclizations have been reported.46... 

The known nonclassical A,B-diheteropentalenes consist of compounds containing an annelated thiophene or selenophene ring, the only uncharged nonradical representations of which contain a tetravalent sulfur or selenium, while the charged structures represent carbonyl, azomethine, thiocarbonyl or selenocarbonyl ylides. The parent systems have not yet been synthesized, only substituted compounds being known. The properties of these substituted derivatives provide a good measure of understanding of the reactivities of the parent systems. 

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