title: Facile synthesis of AsP3.
abstract: The elements phosphorus and arsenic form tetrahedral P4 and As4 molecules, of which the former is a commodity chemical and the latter unstable. Previously, information on molecules of intermediate composition was limited to a spectroscopic study involving hot gas-phase mixtures of phosphorus and arsenic. The AsP3 molecule has yielded to chemical synthesis and was isolated in solid form as a pure substance with a melting point from 71 degrees to 73 degrees C. Physical properties and spectroscopic characterization data for AsP3 are described, and its structure was determined as a ligand in a coordination complex. Soluble in organic solvents, AsP3 represents an attractive starting point for any synthesis in which the target molecule or material contains an exact 1:3 ratio of arsenic to phosphorus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Room 6-435, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors.forename: Brandi M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Cossairt
authors.forename: Mariam-Céline
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Diawara
authors.forename: Christopher C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Cummins