A series of fourteen O-ethyl-N-butylphenylphosphonamidates with benzyl ether substituents at the ortho position was prepared and fully characterised. Upon treatment with n-butyllithium in THF at RT, they underwent cyclisation in eight cases to give the novel 2,3-dihydrobenzo[d][1,3]oxaphospholes in moderate to low yield as a single diastereomer, for which the relative configuration was determined by X-ray diffraction in one case.
