Palladium-catalyzed intramolecular aminofluorination of unactivated alkenes.

A novel palladium-catalyzed intramolecular oxidative aminofluorination of unactivated alkenes has been developed, in which AgF was used as a key fluorinating reagent and PhI(OPiv)(2) as oxidant. The reaction afforded vicinal fluoroamine products with very high regioselectivity. A Pd(II/IV) catalytic cycle was proposed, and preliminary mechanistic studies indicated that direct reductive elimination of Pd(IV) intermediates is favored, albeit competing with S(N)2 nucleophilic attack by fluorine, to form a C-F bond.