Multicomponent synthesis of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines using catalytic zinc chloride

The novel use of zinc chloride to catalyze the one-pot, three component synthesis of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines from a range of substrates using either conventional heating or microwave irradiation is described. This methodology affords a number of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines in reasonable yields and short reaction times without any significant optimization of the reaction conditions.