Controlled Supramolecular Polymerization of d⁸ Metal Complexes through Pathway Complexity and Seeded Growth

In recent years, pathway complexity has been studied in detail for a large variety of organic and π-conjugated molecules. However, such investigations on their metal-containing analogues have received only little attention to date, despite the well-known potential of metal complexes in various fields. In this Minireview, we have collected recent examples of d⁸ metal complexes (Pt(II), Pd(II) and Au(III) complexes) exhibiting controlled supramolecular polymerization through pathway complexity and seeded-growth approaches. Controlling the competing thermodynamic vs. kinetic pathways in these systems should help develop advanced metallosupramolecular functional materials with excellent photophysical, electronic, magnetic, catalytic, and biomedical applications.