Fragmentation of White Phosphorus by a Cyclic (Alkyl)(Amino)Alumanyl Anion

The stable cyclic (alkyl)­(amino)­alumanyl
anion (CAAAl) 3 reacts with white phosphorus (P4) under ambient conditions,
in which P4 is fragmented into a P1 unit to
afford the bis­(alumanyl)­phosphide 2, demonstrating the
direct formation of a P anion from an Al anion. Structural and electronic
features of the latter were fully characterized by standard spectroscopic
means, X-ray diffraction analysis, and computational studies, which
revealed that 2 bears highly polarized Al (δ+)
and P (δ−) and relatively short Al–P bonds, indicative
of the σ-donating and π-accepting nature of CAAAl groups.