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Updated: Mar 16, 2026

Self-assembling Morphologies Obtained from Helical Polycarbodiimide Copolymers and Their Triazole Derivatives
Published on: February 7, 2017
Homochiral [2.2]Paracyclophane Self-Assembly Promoted by Transannular Hydrogen Bonding
Danielle E Fagnani1, Michael J Meese1, Khalil A Abboud1
1Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, P.O. Box 117200, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA.
Abstract:
[2.2]paracyclophane (pCp), unlike many π-building blocks, has been virtually unexplored in supramolecular constructs. Reported here is the synthesis and characterization of the first pCp derivatives capable of programmed self-assembly into extended cofacial π-stacks in solution and the solid state. The design employs transannular (intramolecular) hydrogen bonds (H-bonds), hitherto unstudied in pCps, between pseudo-ortho-positioned amides of a pCp-4,7,12,15-tetracarboxamide (pCpTA) to preorganize the molecules for intermolecular H-bonding with π-stacked neighbors. X-ray crystallography confirms the formation of homochiral, one-dimensional pCpTA stacks helically laced with two H-bond strands. The chiral sense is dictated by the planar chirality (Rp or Sp ) of the pCpTA monomers. A combination of NMR, IR, and UV/Vis studies confirms the formation of the first supramolecular pCp polymers in solution.
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