Facile synthesis and X-ray structures of (η5-C5Me5)Ti(OArF)3 (OArF = OC6F5, OCH2C6F5, and OCH2C6F2H3)

New half-sandwich titanocene complexes (η5-C5Me5)Ti(OC6F5)3 (1), (η5-C5Me5)Ti(OCH2C6F5)3 (2), and (η5-C5Me5)Ti(OCH2C6F2H3)3 (3) were synthesized via the displacement of methoxide ligands in (η5-C5Me5)Ti(OMe)3 by the corresponding aryloxy or benzyloxy ligands. These compounds have been fully characterized by various spectroscopic methods including X-ray crystallography. Compound 1 has a distorted three-legged piano stool structure. However, complexes 2 and 3 have the chariot-like structure, where chariot means a two-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle. The π electron donation of oxygen atom to Ti center in complexes 1–3 is considerable.