Perfluoroarylgold complexes

The number of arylgold complexes has increased considerably, thanks to the use of perfluoroaryl groups, which confer the compounds a higher thermodynamic and kinetic stability. The present review covers the evolution of the knowledge on perfluoroarylgold chemistry since 1994. It focuses not only on the synthesis and structures, but also on the possible applications, such as those derived from the optical properties. Particular attention has been devoted to homo- or hetero-nuclear compounds displaying intra- or intermolecular metal–metal interactions. The complexes cited in this review are organized attending to the non-aryl ligand/s bonded to gold, going from the simplest ones (halides) to the non-classic ferrocene derivatives or metalloligands.