Expanding the Landscape of Phosphorous-Based Open Shell Species: Stable Mono-, Di-, and Trianionic Radicals Based on...

The stepwise reduction of the highly contorted truxene-based triphosphaalkene 1 using KC₈ led to the isolation of mono-, di-, and tri-anionic species. The solid-state molecular structures of mono- and diradical anionic species were elucidated by single crystal X-ray diffractions, revealing elongated P-C bonds and a pronounced "indene" aromatization compared to the parent system. All three radical species displayed distinct Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) spectra, providing compelling evidence for the open-shell electronic configuration of both the diradical and triradical species-an observation unprecedented in any previously reported phosphorous-based anionic polyradicals. Mulliken spin density calculations revealed a dominant localization of radical spin on a single phosphorous atom in the monoanion. In the dianion, spin localization is observed on two phosphorous atoms (~34 % each), with a minor contribution from the third phosphorous (0.13 %), while the trianion demonstrates a uniform distribution of spin density (~30 %) across each phosphorous atom.