Thomas Braun Group

Gusteau said “Anyone can cook!” — we say “Anyone can do arylxenonium!” 👨‍🍳🧪
Our general approach for the synthesis of arylxenonium(II) salts hits the front cover of Inorganic Chemistry!
Cover cooked to perfection by Miriam. #Ratatouille #MyACSCover @pubs.acs.org

Paper: pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

CF and CH Bond Activation Reactions of Fluorinated Molecules at Rhodium Pincer Complexes Hydrido Rh pincer complexes showed C–F bond activation reactivity with a selectivity at the para position of pentafluoropyridine and octafluorotoluene. The C–H bond activation capability was unleashe...

Check out our latest work on C-F and C-H bond activation reactions of fluorinated molecules at rhodium pincer complexes: #ZAAC doi.org/10.1002/zaac...

We’re very proud of Einar, Clara and Jakob who defended their bachelor thesis very successfully. Congratulations to all of you 🥳👏🏼

Congratulations to the whole team 👏🏼

A General Approach for the Synthesis of Arylxenonium(II) Tetrafluoroborates Arylxenonium(II) salts are the most numerous group of organoxenon compounds, i.e., those containing Xe–C bonds, and must be prepared by different routes that lack universality. Here, we present a general synthetic approach to arylxenonium(II) tetrafluoroborates [RXe][BF4] containing different degrees of fluorination at the aryl group R via processes that do not require the use of reactive gases or special equipment. The new synthetic access relies on the generation of aryldifluoroboranes RBF2 in dichloromethane solution by means of the reaction of K[RBF3] and BF3·OEt2, which are then transformed in a subsequent step to [RXe][BF4] salts. This route is not only more accessible than previously existing methods but also yields arylxenonium(II) tetrafluoroborates in higher yield and purity. Nevertheless, for highly acidic aryldifluoroborane species, namely those with R = C6F5, C6HF4, coordination of diethyl ether to the boron center prevents the transfer of the R group to the xenon atom. In these cases, a one-pot procedure starting from BR3, XeF2 and BF3·OEt2 enables their easy synthesis, including that of the novel compound [(2,3,5,6-C6HF4)Xe][BF4]. By means of the analysis of 11B NMR spectra of the aryldifluoroborane mixtures and theoretical calculations, the design of new organoxenonium(II) tetrafluoroborates through one route or the other can be tackled.

Celebration day for #TeamXenon!!
Our first paper is out in Inorganic Chemistry! Check our general and accesible approach for the synthesis of arylxenonium(II) salts. Congratulations to Pablo and all the team for the amazing work! @pubs.acs.org @humboldtuni.bsky.social

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

We're happy to share Amin’s work on a sequential one-pot N-alkylation and aminocarbonylation of primary amines catalysed by heterobimetallic Ir/Pd complexes in cooperation with Michael Roemelt. Now out in @chemicalscience.rsc.org doi.org/10.1039/d5sc...

Brownies summer trip 2025 ☀️ - we had an amazing day visiting the Stasi museum followed by a lake hike. Our trip ended in a beer garden 🍺 Kudos to Marvin for organising the trip! 🥾 @albertpebi.bsky.social

We had a great time at the company relay race 13. Adlershofer Firmenstaffel 💪🏼 our three teams did a great job 🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏻 #Brownies #FastAndFluorous #FlyingFluorines 🏆

Lewis-acid induced mechanochemical degradation of polyvinylidene fluoride: transformation into valuable products Polyvinylidene fluoride (–[CH2CF2]n–, PVDF) waste poses significant environmental challenges due to its recalcitrant nature and widespread use. This study addresses the end-of-life management of PVDF ...

Our work on Lewis-acid induced mechanochemical degradation of polyvinylidene fluoride being transformed into valuable products is now out in @chemicalscience.rsc.org w/ @franemmerling.bsky.social & Kannan Balasubramanian: pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a... @humboldtuni.bsky.social @bamresearch.bsky.social

We had a great time at the #esfc2025 in Lisbon 🇵🇹 Congratulations to Julie for receiving the first place poster prize 🥳 Thanks to Ana and João for organising such a great event

1 week left to apply for a PhD position, 4 y. with 2/3 of E 13 TV-L salary, assigned broadly to the design and synthesis of coordination compds for the activation of small molecules (www.chemie.hu-berlin.de/aglimberg/st...). Pls apply directly to christian.limberg@chemie.hu-berlin.de. Pls retweet!

Activation of SOF2 at Rh Pincer Complexes: Ligand Backbone Versus Metal Centred Reactivity Deprotonated Rh pincer complexes reveals a dual reactivity due to S─F bond activation of SOF2: ligand backbone versus metal centered activation. Ligand supported activation generates a backbone bound....

Liza‘s research on the activation of SOF2 at Rh pincer complexes is now out in @chemistryeurope.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1002/ceur... ✨

Congratulations to our colleague Philipp Adelhelm @humboldtuni for receiving the Berlin Science Award! Well deserved 👍👏🏻

Platinum‐Catalysed Hydrofluorination of Alkynes at Room Temperature Promoted by a Fluoride Shuttle This work presents an air and moisture tolerant platinum-catalysed hydrofluorination system that gives selectively (Z)-fluoroalkenes. Experimental and computational investigation on the mechanism all...

Ouchan‘s work on a Pt-catalysed hydrofluorination system at room temperature promoted by BF3, PF5 and HF as fluoride shuttles is now out in @angewandtechemie.bsky.social 🚀 With detailed DFT calculations in cooperation with Martin Kaupp! doi.org/10.1002/anie... #SFB1349 @humboldtuni.bsky.social

PhD POSITION OPEN! We are looking for someone enthusiastic to join our team at @humboldtuni.bsky.social! If you want to work in the frontier between noble gas chemistry and organometallic fluorine chemistry, this is for you! #TeamXenon
Info here: haushalt-und-personal.hu-berlin.de/de/personal/...

We were very excited to have Prof. Vincenzo Busico from the university of Naples as guest lecturer last week @humboldtuni.bsky.social ! Thanks for giving us a great insight into an integrated high throughput experimentation/AI approach to model molecular organometallic catalysts

Let’s celebrate 25 years Long Night of Science ✨Join us at the „Mit-Mach-Labor“ at the #LNDW2025 on the 28th June 2025 starting at 5pm in Adlershof ✨👩🏻‍🔬👨🏻‍🔬 for more details 👉🏼 www.langenachtderwissenschaften.de/programm/det...

Get your anniversary ticket here 👉🏼 lndw-tickets.reservix.de/tickets-die-...

Photo from the Research Group OrgXeMet

Herzlichen Glückwunsch! 🎉 Der HU-Nachwuchswissenschaftler Alberto Pérez-Bitrián erhält die Emmy Noether-Förderung der @dfg.de. Die Forschungsgruppe @perezbitrianlab.bsky.social untersucht Eigenschaften und Reaktionsfreudigkeit von Xenonverbindungen. Mehr Infos: 👉 www.hu-berlin.de/de/pr/nachri...

We're happy to share the work on activation of perfluoro(methyl vinyl ether) at Rh(I) complexes by Soodeh. Now out in @chemicalscience.rsc.org: pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...

Die Forschenden wiesen nach, dass auch Fluoratome quantenmechanisch Tunneln können – wodurch ein Molekül ohne weiteres zwischen zwei Zuständen wechselt, die eigentlich durch eine Energiebarriere voneinander getrennt sind.

„Fluor-Mauer“ überwunden: Forschende beobachten erstmals Tunneleffekt bei schweren Atomen. Mit quantenchemischen Simulationen wurde nachgewiesen, dass auch Fluoratome zwischen zwei Zuständen wechseln können. @riedellab.bsky.social @cnrs.fr
👉 www.fu-berlin.de/xd9k1v3

Congratulations to the newly minted Dr. Christian Heinekamp @cheinekamp.bsky.social who defended his thesis successfully yesterday! 🥳 We wish you all the best at Dr. Heinekamp laboratory and institute planning! @franemmerling.bsky.social

Zirconium fluoride-supported high-entropy fluoride: a catalyst for enhanced oxygen evolution reaction Extended hydrogen initiatives promote the urgency of research on water splitting technologies and, therein, oxygen evolution reaction catalysts being developed. A route to access a ZrF4 supported high...

We're happy to share Christian’s @cheinekamp.bsky.social work on a zirconium fluoride supported high entropy fluoride as catalyst for enhanced oxygen evolution reaction in cooperation with @franemmerling.bsky.social published in @jmaterchem.rsc.org: doi.org/10.1039/D4TA...

Wonderful conference @freieuniversitaet.bsky.social on PFAS. More than 180 participants from academia, industry and authorities listened to 16 talks from different disciplines. Great discussions and many new contacts. Many thanks to @gdch.bsky.social and @umweltstiftung.bsky.social

Volles Haus bei der PFAS Tagung des @gdch.bsky.social Thinktanks PFAS gemeinsamer mit dem SFB1349 der @freieuniversitaet.bsky.social. Danke an den Host @riedellab.bsky.social und alle anderen Teammitglieder für die Organisation!

Next Monday our joint PFAS conference of the CRC 1349 and the @gdch.bsky.social will start at the @freieuniversitaet.bsky.social Berlin. We have a great programme that covers all different areas. Anyone who is still interested is cordially invited.

Routes to Pt Derivatives of High‐Valent Sulfur Oxofluorides S(=O)2F, S(=O)F2 and S(=O)F3 by Fluorination and Oxygenation Metal derivatives of high-valent sulfur fluorides and oxofluorides can provide fluorinated building blocks for materials science and bioactive compounds, but so far, such building blocks are elusive....

Ruben’s work on routes to Pt Derivatives of High-Valent Sulfur Oxofluorides S(=O)2F, S(=O)F2 and S(=O)F3 by Fluorination and Oxygenation is now published in @angewandtechemie.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1002/anie...

There is just one more day left to apply for this PhD position. Come and join us in Newcastle!

Structural investigations of catalytically relevant chlorofluorides using a combined X-ray and neutron scattering approach

Authors: Christian Heinekamp, Javier Castells-Gil, Phoebe K. Allan, Mike Ahrens, Minh Bui, Thomas Braun, Franziska Emmerling
DOI: 10.26434/chemrxiv-2025-bzh7r

A Kβ valence to core X-ray emission approach for fluorine and oxygen differentiation in Zr compounds

Authors: Christian Heinekamp, Cafer-Tufan Cakir, Ana Guilherme Buzanich, Konstantin Klementiev, Michael Römelt, Thomas Braun, Franziska Emmerling
DOI: 10.26434/chemrxiv-2025-3mzhb

Had a nice, long day at the chemistry department of @humboldtuni.bsky.social. Great insights into current research by @christianlimberg.bsky.social, @braungroup.bsky.social, @joshabbenseth.bsky.social, Ray group and others. The place still feels like home although I left it more than ten year ago.