Efficient use of a surfactant for copper-catalyzed coupling reaction of arylboronic acids with imidazoles in water

Copper-catalyzed oxidative coupling of arylboronic acids with imidazoles in water was realized by using an amphiphilic surfactant. By choosing an appropriate surfactant, reactions of a variety of arylboronic acids proceeded smoothly under mild and base-free conditions, providing an efficient, practical, and greener method for the synthesis of N-arylimidazoles.