Organophosphines are among the most used ligands in homogeneous catalysis and it has widely demonstrated that their structure and electronic properties can be tailored to specific applications. With the view to advance this research field, the Gabbaï group has recently investigated the synthesis of carbenium-based γ-cationic phosphines and their complexation to gold(I) complexes. In this presentation, we will discuss the heightened reactivity stemming from the presence of an Au→C<sub>carbenium</sub> interaction in the resulting complexes while at the same time correlating the Lewis acidity of the carbenium unit to the reactivity of the gold complex. In addition to covering the synthesis of these ligands and their conversation into gold complexes, we will also discuss applications in carbophilic catalysis.

Synthesis and reactivity of compounds featuring Lewis acidic carbenium ligands

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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