Synthesis of Aryl‐ and Heteroaryl‐Trifluoroethyl Ethers: Aims, Challenges and New Methodologies

Fluorinated substances have outstanding importance in most fields of the chemical industry, from agrochemicals and material science to pharmaceutical research. Although aryl‐ and heteroaryl‐trifluoroethyl ethers have widespread applications, predominantly as drug molecules, their preparation was limited to classical synthetic methodologies until the last decade. The transition metal catalyzed cross coupling reactions offered novel synthetic approaches for the facile access of trifluoroethoxylated aromatic compounds. The aim of this review is to give a good overview on recent advances in the synthesis of aryl‐trifluoroethyl ethers from a practical point of view for synthetic organic chemists working in the field of pharmaceutical industry and academia.