Abstract
Computational studies of the mechanism of the Pd-catalyzed, Cu(I)-carboxylate-mediated desulfitative coupling of thioorganics with boronic acids have determined that the requisite Cu(I)-carboxylate plays multiple important roles. The Cu(I)-carboxylate enhances both the transmetalation and the C-C reductive elimination steps: it acts as a reactive transmetalation center and it provides a vital carboxylate ligand. The carboxylate ligand functions not only as an activator for the boronic acid, but it also displaces a phosphine ligand at the palladium center generating a catalytically competent mono-phosphine-palladium intermediate.