Fluoride affinities of fluorinated alanes

▶ Fluorinated aluminate anions (AlHmF4−m−) can be formed in the gas phase by ionization of diethylmethylamine-alane with molecular fluorine. ▶ Energy-resolved collision-induced dissociation is used to measure fluoride affinities of the alanes. ▶ The measured fluoride affinities agree with predictions obtained from coupled-cluster calculations with very large basis sets. ▶ Fluoride affinities reflect the extent of positive charge character on the aluminum in the alanes.