Formation and selection of the macrocycle [{(tBuN)P(μ-NtBu)}2(μ-Se)2{P(μ-NtBu)}2]3

Main group inorganic macrocycles, based on p-block element backbones other than carbon, are a challenging synthetic target that has been largely overlooked. In this study, we show that a simple strategy based on the combination of electrophilic and nucleophilic phosphazane building blocks can be extended to readily accessible [E(tBuN)P(μ-NtBu)]22− nucleophilic components, as exemplified by the Se-bridge PIII/PV phosphazane macrocycle [{(tBuN)PV(μ-NtBu)}2(μ-Se)2{PIII(μ-NtBu)}2]3.