The dioxygen reactivity of as eries of TMPA-based copper(I) complexes (TMPA = tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine), with and without secondary-coordination-sphere hydrogenbonding moieties,w as studied at À135 8 8Ci n2 -methyltetrahydrofuran (MeTHF). Kinetic stabilization of the H-bonded [( ðX 1 ÞðX 2 Þ TMPA)Cu II (O 2 C À )] + cupric superoxide species was achieved, and they were characterized by resonance Raman (rR) spectroscopy. The structures and physical properties of [( ðX 1 ÞðX 2 Þ TMPA)Cu II (N 3 À )] + azido analogues were compared, and the O 2 C À reactivity of ligand-Cu I complexes when an Hbonding moiety is replaced by amethyl group was contrasted. Ad rastic enhancement in the reactivity of the cupric superoxide towards phenolic substrates as well as oxidation of substrates possessing moderate C À Hb ond-dissociation energies is observed, correlating with the number and strength of the H-bonding groups.Oxidation and oxygenation reactions are vital for biological and synthetic processes. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] In biology,s ome copper-containing metalloenzymes are capable of performing these reactions. [2,10] Forexample,galactose oxidase (GO) is responsible for the oxidation of primary alcohols to aldehydes (Figure 1A); monooxygenases such as peptidylglycine a-hydroxylating monooxygenase (PHM), dopamine b-monooxygenase (DbM), and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LMPOs) catalytically hydroxylate organic substrates containing strong (85-100 kcal mol À1 )C ÀHb ond dissociation energies (BDEs) using dioxygen ( Figure 1B). [2,[10][11][12] These reactions are important for biosynthesis of human prohormones and neurotransmitters in the former,a nd breaking down polysaccharides in the latter. Acupric superoxide species (that is,Cu II À O 2 C À ,formed from the reaction of copper(I) and dioxygen) is postulated to be involved in the catalytic cycles of each of these enzymes. [11] In GO,t his complex abstracts ah ydrogen atom from anearby Tyrresidue,thereby forming the catalytically active intermediate responsible for substrate oxidation.While the exact nature of the reactive intermediate in LPMOs is still widely debated, [12][13][14] ac onsensus in the literature for PHM and DbMi sthat acupric superoxide is responsible for the initial hydrogen-atom transfer (HAT) from ac arbon substrate. [11] Thus,t he study of synthetic cupric superoxide model complexes to further understand their structures, physical-spectroscopic properties,a nd correlated reactivity toward the hydroxylation of substrates containing strong CÀ Hb onds is of considerable interest in catalysis.Ty pically,t hese primary copper-dioxygen superoxide model species [11,15,16] are difficult to study due to their tendency to form secondary Cu 2 -O 2 adducts (that is, m-1,2peroxo-dicopper(II), side-on peroxodicopper(II), or bis-moxodicopper(III) complexes) in solution. Researchers have been able to prevent the formation of 2:1C u:O 2 adducts through ligand design;the addition of as econdary coordination sphere of sterically bulky groups [17][18][19][20][21...