Cu-catalyzed direct amidation of aromatic C-H bonds: an access to arylamines.

A Cu-catalyzed aromatic C-H amidation with phthalimide under oxygen as a terminal oxidant without using additional additives has been achieved. This reaction has the broad substrate scope and shows moderate to good yields in most cases. This method is complementary to the previously reported metal-catalyzed C-H amination systems.