Catalytic Generation of Zinc Carbenes from Alkynes: Zinc‐Catalyzed Cyclopropanation and SiH Bond Insertion Reactions

Think zinc : Synthetically relevant zinc(II) carbenes are catalytically generated from alkynes (see scheme). This new approach allows zinc‐catalyzed cyclopropanation and SiH bond insertion reactions to generate the corresponding cyclopropylfurans or silane derivatives. The structure of the key carbene intermediate was studied using theoretical methods.