Aromatic and antiaromatic gold(III) hexaphyrins with multiple gold-carbon bonds.

Au(III) metalation of hexakis(pentafluorophenyl) [26]hexaphyrin led to formation of aromatic mono-Au(III) hexaphyrin and bis-Au(III) hexaphyrin, in which the inner pyrrolic beta-protons are activated to form gold-carbon bonds, hence accommodating Au(III) ion with a NNCC core in a square planar manner. Two-electron reductions of these complexes with NaBH4 provided the corresponding [28]hexaphyrin complexes which exhibit distinct paratropic ring currents.