Autocatalytic formation of fluorinated ferrocenophanes from 1,1'-bis(trifluorovinyl)ferrocene.

1,1'-Bis(trifluorovinyl)ferrocene is obtained in excellent yields from a Negishi type coupling reaction. Under certain redox conditions and in the presence of a suitable nucleophile, the highly reactive compound undergoes a transformation to fluorinated ferrocenophanes. Intra and intermolecular [2+2]-cycloaddition products are formed upon heating. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011