Structural systematic studies of fluoro(pyridinyl)benzamide derivatives

Abstract

Halogen atoms are typically located at the periphery of organic molecules and are thus ideally positioned to be involved in intermolecular interactions. Halogen bonding (XB) describes any interaction where halogen atoms function as electrophilic species. XB can be described by the general scheme D•••X-Y where X is the electrophilic halogen atom (Lewis acid, XB donor), D is a donor of electron density (Lewis base, XB acceptor), and Y is carbon, nitrogen, halogen, etc. (Scheme 1)[1]. The main features of the interaction will be given and the close similarity with hydrogen bonding will become apparent. Some heuristic principles will be presented in order to develop a rational crystal engineering based on XB. The potential of the interaction will be shown by useful applications in different fields spanning synthetic chemistry, material science, and bioorganic chemistry.