Gold heptafluoride is a gold(V) compound with the empirical formula AuF<sub>7</sub>. The synthesis of this compound from gold pentafluoride and a monatomic fluorine plasma was first reported in 1986. However, current calculations suggest that the structure of the synthesized molecule was actually a difluorine ligand on a gold pentafluoride core, AuF<sub>5</sub>÷F<sub>2</sub>. That would make it the first difluorine complex and the first compound containing a fluorine atom with an oxidation state of zero. The gold(V)âÂÂdifluorine complex is calculated to be 205 kJ/mol more stable than "true" gold(VII) fluoride. The vibrational frequency at 734 cm<sup>âÂÂ1</sup> is the hallmark of the end-on coordinated difluorine molecule.
Gold heptafluoride decomposes at 100 ðC to gold(V) fluoride releasing fluorine gas:
It also undergoes hydrolysis in water.