Preorganization: a powerful tool in intermolecular halogen bonding in solution

Preorganization is a powerful tool in supramolecular chemistry which has been utilized successfully in intra‐ and intermolecular halogen bonding. In previous work, we had developed a bidentate bis(iodobenzimidazolium)‐based halogen bond donor which featured a central trifluoromethyl substituent. This compound showed a markedly increased catalytic activity compared to unsubstituted bis(iodoimidazolium)‐based Lewis acids, which could be explained either by electronic effects (the electron withdrawal by the fluorinated substituent) or by preorganization (the hindered rotation of the halogen bonding moieties). Herein, we systematically investigate the origin of this increased Lewis acidity via a comparison of the two types of compounds and their respective derivatives with or without the central trifluoromethyl group. Calorimetric measurements of halide complexations indicated that preorganization is the main reason for the higher halogen bonding strength. The performance of the catalysts in a series of benchmark reactions corroborates this finding