Supramolecule-to-Supramolecule Transformations of Coordination-Driven Self-Assembled Polygons

Abstract

Two types of supramolecular transformations, wherein a self-assembled Pt(II)-pyridyl metal−organic polygon is controllably converted into an alternative polygon, have been achieved through the reaction between cobalt carbonyl and the acetylene moiety of a dipyridyl donor ligand. A [6 + 6] hexagon is transformed into two [3 + 3] hexagons, and a triangle−square mixture is converted into [2 + 2] rhomboids. ¹H and ³¹P NMR spectra are used to track the transformation process and evaluate the yield of new self-assembled polygons. Such transformed species are identified by electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectrometry. This new kind of supramolecule-to-supramolecule transformations provides a viable means for constructing, and then converting, new self-assembled polygons.