Tris(tetramethylguanidinyl)phosphine: The Simplest Non-ionic Phosphorus Superbase and Strongly Donating Phosphine Ligand

We report the synthesis and properties of the much sought-after tris(1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidinyl) phosphine P(tmg)(3), a crystalline, superbasic phosphine accessible through a short and scalable procedure from the cheap and commercially available bulk chemicals 1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidine, tris(dimethylamino)-phosphine and phosphorus trichloride. The new phosphine exhibits exceptional electron donor properties and readily forms transition metal complexes with gold(I), palladium(II) and rhodium(I) precursors. The formation of zwitterionic Lewis base adducts with carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide was explored. In addition, the complete series of phosphine chalcogenides was prepared from the reaction of P(tmg)(3) with N2O and the elemental chalcogens.