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Self-Assembly of Metallo-Supramolecular Polygons and Polyhedra

Self-assembly relies on building blocks that are suitably programmed with respect to the position and directionality of their binding sites which direct the assembly of many building blocks into one larger structure. Its formation is reversible so that error correction can occur, if binding sites have not been connected the most favorable way.

Among the metallo-supramolecular structures prepared and characterized in the group are simple polygons incorporating a number of identical ligands and metal centers, but also larger cages. In cooperation with the groups of Markus Albrecht and Jonathan Nitschke, mass spectrometry served as a tool to characterize even quite complex helicates and [7]catenanes and to follow their formation and dissociation pathways.

Chiral metallo-supramolecular polygons have been made some of which bear dynamically chiral bipyridyl ligands and show heterochiral self-sorting. Other chiral rhomboids have been deposited on surfaces to provide a means to structure the surface with chiral host molecules.

Some metallo-supramolecular oligomer chains even exhibit hierarchical self-assembly in that they grow into nanospheres and metallo-supramolecular vesicles.

A metallo-supramolecular cage undergoing a cage contraction in the gas phase

 

Related Publications

Metallo-Supramolecular Self-Assembly





 

Chiral Metallo-Supramolecular Assemblies




 

Hierarchical Self-Assembly




 

Gas-Phase Chemistry of Metallo-Supramolecular Assemblies