C(sp)-H Fluorination with a Copper(II)/(III) Redox Couple.

Despite the growing interest in the synthesis of fluorinated organic compounds, few reactions are able to incorporate fluoride ions directly into alkyl C-H bonds. Here, we report the C(sp)-H fluorination reactivity of a formally copper(III) fluoride complex. The C-H fluorination intermediate, CuF, along with its chloride and bromide analogues, CuCl and CuBr, were prepared directly from halide sources with a chemical oxidant and fully characterized with single-crystal X-ray diffraction, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, UV-vis spectroscopy, and H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.