Supramolecular Arrays Based on Dimetal Building Units

Texas A&M Research Foundation, College Station TX

Investigators

Abstract

This award by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry program supports research by Professor F. Albert Cotton at Texas A&M University to continue studies on using dinuclear complexes to design and synthesize molecular architectures including pairs, loops, and polygons as well as 1-, 2- and 3-dimensional extended structures. The communication between the pairs of metal atoms will be investigated as the oxidation of the neutral units occurs. Refined synthetic methods should allow for the design of large cavities with better shape control and factors for anion and guest recognition. Diruthenium molecules will be used in addition to those involving molybdenum and rhodium. Designs will focus on new structural motifs with a special emphasis on the introduction of chirality into the structures. Molecules with two metal atoms will be used as building blocks to design extended lattices with interesting structural, magnetic and conductive properties. Graduate students and postdocs will be trained in the synthesis and structural characterization of novel supramolecular materials and their applications.