Abstract: | The ring enlargement of 1‐benzyl‐2,5‐dihydro‐1H‐phosphole oxide ( 1 ) via the corresponding 2‐phosphabicyclo3.1.0]hexane 2‐oxide ( 2 ) afforded, depending on the conditions, the double bond isomers ( A and B ) of 1,2‐dihydrophosphinine oxide 4 or that of 3‐substituted 1,2,3,6‐tetrahydrophosphinine oxides 5 and 6 . Dihydrophosphinine oxides ( 4 ) were suitable starting materials for 1,2,3,4,5,6‐hexahydrophosphinine oxide 7 and 1,2,3,6‐tetrahydrophosphinine oxide 8 obtained by reductive approaches and for the double bond isomers ( A and B ) of 2‐phosphabicyclo2.2.2]octadiene 2‐oxide 9 and phosphabicyclooctene oxide 10 prepared in Diels–Alder cycloaddition. Precursor 9 was utilized in the fragmentation‐related phosphorylation of alcohols. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 19:28–34, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/hc.20363 |