DOES PHENYLPHOSPHINIDENE EXIST? - MASS SPECTROMETRIC GENERATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF Ph-P

Dissociative electron impact ionization (70 eV) of PhPBr2 yields [C6,H5,P]*+ ions with the PhP connectivity, as inferred from its collisional activation mass spectrum. Neutralization-Reionization experiments on this ion indicate that its neutral counterpart, phenylphosphinidene, Ph-P, is a stable species in the dilute gas phase.