A Shape-Adaptable Organometallic Supramolecular Coordination Cage for the Encapsulation of Fullerenes

The development of three-dimensional supramolecular coordination complexes (SCCs), with cavities suitable for guest binding, is of great interest because these materials are useful in a large number of applications. Herein, a nickel-conjoined organometallic molecular prism is described, which has been fully characterized. The X-ray diffraction structure of the molecule reveals that the cage possesses an internal cavity with a volume of 1028 ų , thus suitable for the encapsulation of large 3D-molecules, such as fullerenes. This cage shows highly selective complexation of C₇₀ over C₆₀ , thus being potentially useful for fullerene separation and purification. The combined experimental and computational studies suggest that the complexation process is largely entropically-driven, and DFT calculations suggest that the cage is flexible and can adapt the size and the shape of the cavity to maximize the face-to-face interaction with the fullerenes.