Fluorocyclization of Allyl Alcohols and Amines to Access 3-Functionalized Oxetanes and Azetidines.

An efficient method to prepare 3-functionalized oxetanes and azetidines has been realized by fluorocyclization of readily available 2-azidoallyl/2-alkoxyallyl alcohols and amines. Notably, this is the first example applying the fluorocyclization strategy to construct four-membered heterocycles. The pendant electron-donating group (-N3 or -OR) plays a crucial role in polarizing the C═C double bond and facilitating the cyclization process, as verified by DFT and experimental studies.