Trifluoromethyl Derivatives of Benzooxatellurole

Replacement of the iodine atom in an iodine (III) CF3-transfer reagent with a Te-aryl moiety was accomplished in a three-step synthetic sequence. Three compounds of this type have been prepared, two of which were characterized by X-ray diffraction. Single crystal structures were also obtained for three related Te(IV) compounds unreported so far (4a, 4b, 6b). Comparison with the iodine (III) analogues indicate a large degree of structural similarity, however these species display an interesting decomposition pathway under thermal conditions. In addition to the expected Te-CF3 bond cleavage, C-F bond cleavage is also observed, unlike in the case of iodine (III) compounds.