Photoinduced Skeletal Rearrangement of Diarylethenes Comprising Oxazole and Phenyl Rings

A novel photochemical rearrangement of diarylethenes bearing oxazole and benzene derivatives as aryl moieties that results in the formation of polyaromatic systems was investigated. The mechanism of the transformation includes photocyclization, sequential [1,9] and [1,3]-hydrogen shifts, as well as a lateral oxazole ring-opening process. It was shown that this reaction can be an effective synthetically preparative method for the preparation of naphthalene (polyaromatic) derivatives.