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Updated: Oct 22, 2025

Preparation and Reactivity of a Triphosphenium Bromide Salt: A Convenient and Stable Source of PhosphorusI
Published on: November 22, 2016
Cyano(triphenylsilyl)phosphanide as a Building Block for P,C,N Conjugated Molecules
Grégoire Le Corre1, Juan José Gamboa-Carballo1,2, Zhongshu Li3
1Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zürich, Vladimir-Prelog Weg 1, Hönggerberg, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland.
Abstract:
The cyano(triphenylsilyl)phosphanide anion was prepared as a sodium salt from 2-phosphaethynolate. The electronic structure of this new cyano(silyl)phosphanide was studied via computational methods and its reactivity investigated using various electrophiles and Lewis acids, demonstrating its P- and N-nucleophilicity. The ambident reactivity is in agreement with computations. The silyl group also shows lability and therefore the cyano(silyl)phosphanide can be considered as a phosphacyanamide synthon, [PCN]2- , and serves as building block for the transfer of a PCN moiety.
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