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Professor Mohammad Movassaghi has been selected to receive the Hofflmann-La Roche Inc. (Roche) 2009 Excellence in Chemistry Award. Roche provides two such awards per year to outstanding young chemistry faculty members whom Roche anticipate will become world leaders in synthetic organic chemistry. The award is accompanied with an unrestricted research grant and a symposium at Roche in June 2009.

Cummins Lab

Facile Synthesis of AsP3

Cossairt B.M., Diawara M.C., and Cummins C.C., Science, 2009, 323, 602.

Preparative synthesis of the tetraatomic AsP3 molecule has been accomplished for the first time. The+ synthesis of this interpnictide involves treatment of an anionic cyclo-P3 complex of niobium with AsCl3 to form NaCl, niobium(V) dichloride (Cl2Nb(ODipp)3(THF), where Dipp = 2,6-diisopropylphenyl), and AsP3 in good yield. The identity of AsP3 is confirmed by 31P NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, laser Raman spectroscopy, and through initial reactivity studies.

Treatment of (N₂)[Mo(CO)₃(PiPr₃)₂]₂ with AsP₃ results in displacement of N₂ to give rise to P-bound (AsP₃)Mo(CO)₃(PiPr₃)₂ in high isolated yield. (AsP₃)Mo(CO)₃(PiPr₃)₂, the first metal complex of AsP₃, has been fully characterized by spectroscopic, analytical, and crystallographic methods. Exploration of the generality of EP₃ synthesis is currently being explored and preliminary experiments have led to the observation of As₂P₂, As₃P, and SbP₃.