Supramolecular Copolymerization by Sequence Reorganization of a Supramolecular Homopolymer

Chiral Induction of a Tetrakis(porphyrin) in Various Chiral Solvents

Non-covalent interactions offer an alternative way for developing stimulus-responsive materials such as sensors, machines, and drug-delivery systems. We recently reported that a urethane-equipped tetrakis(porphyrin) forms one-handed helical supramolecular polymers in solution in response to chirality of chiral solvents. Conformational changes in helical sense were detected using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, which showed that the tetrakis(porphyrin) can possibly be used as a sensor for determining the enantiomeric excess of a chiral analyte. Hence, we studied the scope and limitations of the chiral-induction behavior of tetrakis(porphyrin) to deepen the understanding of tetrakis(porphyrin)-based chiral sensing systems. Herein, we report the chiral-induction behavior of tetrakis(porphyrin) in various chiral solvents, which was found to be CD-active in many chiral solvents. Notably, the tetrakis(porphyrin) was CD active in a cryptochiral molecular solvent, which is exciting because the chiralities of acyclic saturated hydrocarbons are hard to sense. Consequently, this study highlights the potential advantages of supramolecular chiral sensors capable of targeting a wide range of analytes, including molecules that are absorption-silent in the UV/vis region, ones devoid of anchoring functional groups, and acyclic, saturated hydrocarbons.

Controlled Helical Organization in Supramolecular Polymers of Pseudo-Macrocyclic Tetrakisporphyrins

Tetrakisporphyrin monomers with amino acid side chains at each end form intramolecular antiparallel hydrogen-bonds to adopt chirally twisted pseudo-macrocyclic structures that result in right-handed and left-handed (P)- and (M)-conformations. The pseudo-macrocyclic tetrakisporphyrin monomers self-assembled to form supramolecular helical pseudo-polycatenane polymers via head-to-head complementary dimerization of the bisporphyrin cleft units in an isodesmic manner. The formation of one-handed supramolecular helical pseudo-polycatenane polymers was confirmed by circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. The methyl and iso-propyl groups at the stereogenic center greatly enhanced the induced circular dichroism in the Soret bands of the supramolecular helical pseudo-polycatenane polymers. The induced CDs were reduced upon the introduction of large iso-butyl and tert-butyl groups. Atomic force microscopy revealed well-grown and long supramolecular helical pseudo-polycatenane polymer chains with chain lengths in the range of 361 to 13.6 nm. The right-handed helical chains were established by the self-assembly of the right-handed (P)-conformation of the pseudo-macrocyclic monomer.

Porphyrin-based supramolecular polymers

Porphyrin derivatives are ubiquitous in bio-organisms and are associated with proteins that play important biological roles, such as oxygen transport, photosynthesis, and catalysis. Porphyrins are very fascinating research objects for chemists, physicists, and biologists owing to their versatile chemical and physical properties. Porphyrin derivatives are actively used in various fields, such as molecular recognition, energy conversion, sensors, biomedicine, and catalysts. Porphyrin derivatives can be used as building blocks for supramolecular polymers because their primitive structures have C₄ symmetry, which allows for the symmetrical introduction of self-assembling motifs. This review describes the fabrication of porphyrin-based supramolecular polymers and novel discoveries in supramolecular polymer growth. First, we summarise the (i) design concepts, (ii) growth mechanism and (iii) analytical methods of porphyrin-based supramolecular polymers. Then, the examples of porphyrin-based supramolecular polymers formed by (iv) hydrogen bonding, (v) metal coordination-based interaction, (vi) host-guest complex formation, and (vii) others are summarised. Finally, (viii) applications and perspectives are discussed. Although supramolecular polymers, in a broad sense, can include either two-dimensional (2D) networks or three-dimensional (3D) porous polymer structures; this review mainly focuses on one-dimensional (1D) fibrous supramolecular polymer structures.

Supramolecular chiral sensing by supramolecular helical polymers

A tetrakis(porphyrin) with branched side chains self-assembled to form supramolecular helical polymers both in solution and in the solid state. The helicity of the supramolecular polymers was determined by the chirality of solvent molecules, which permitted the polymer chains to be used in chiral sensing.

Single-Photon Near-Infrared-Responsiveness from the Molecular to the Supramolecular Level via Platination of Pentacenes

Near-infrared (NIR) responsiveness is important for various applications. Currently, single-photon NIR-responsive systems are rare compared to systems that display two-photon absorption and triplet-triplet annihilation processes. Supramolecular stacking of photo-responsive chromophores results in decreased efficiency due to space-confinement effects. Herein we show that σ-platination of pentacenes is a feasible protocol to build single-photon NIR-responsive systems, with advantages including a low HOMO-LUMO energy gap, high photochemical efficiency, and pathway specificity. The pentacene-to-endoperoxidation transformation is accompanied by color and absorbance changes. The high photo-oxygenation efficiency of σ-platinated pentacenes facilitates NIR responsiveness in one-dimensional supramolecular polymers, resulting in the disappearance of supramolecular chirality signals and disruption of self-assembled nanofibers. Overall, the σ-platination strategy opens up new avenues toward NIR photo-responsive materials at the molecular and supramolecular levels.

Tunable Adhesion from Stoichiometry-Controlled and Sequence-Defined Supramolecular Polymers Emerges Hierarchically from Cyanostar-Stabilized Anion-Anion Linkages

Sequence-controlled supramolecular polymers offer new design paradigms for generating stimuli-responsive macromolecules with enhanced functionalities. The dynamic character of supramolecular links present challenges to sequence definition in extended supramolecular macromolecules, and design principles remain nascent. Here, we demonstrate the first example of using stoichiometry-control to specify the monomer sequence in a linear supramolecular polymer by synthesizing both a homopolymer and an alternating copolymer from the same glycol-substituted cyanostar macrocycle and phenylene-linked diphosphate monomers. A 2:1 stoichiometry between macrocycle and diphosphate produces a supramolecular homopolymer of general formula (A)_n comprised of repeating units of cyanostar-stabilized phosphate-phosphate dimers. Using a 1:1 stoichiometry, an alternating (AB)_n structure is produced with half the phosphate dimers now stabilized by the additional counter cations that emerge hierarchically after forming the stronger cyanostar-stabilized phosphate dimers. These new polymer materials and binding motifs are sufficient to bear normal and shear stress to promote significant and tunable adhesive properties. The homopolymer (A)_n, consisting of cyanostar-stabilized anti-electrostatic linkages, shows adhesion strength comparable to commercial superglue formulations based on polycyanoacrylate but is thermally reversible. Unexpectedly, and despite including traditional ionic linkages, the alternating copolymer (AB)_n shows weaker adhesion strength more similar to commercial white glue based on poly(vinyl acetate). Thus, the adhesion properties can be tuned over a wide range by simply controlling the stoichiometric ratio of monomers. This study offers new insight into supramolecular polymers composed of custom-designed anion and receptor monomers and demonstrates the utility of emerging functional materials based on anion-anion linkages.

A dual redox-responsive supramolecular polymer driven by molecular recognition between bisporphyrin and trinitrofluorenone

A dual redox-responsive supramolecular polymer driven by molecular recognition between bisporphyrin (bisPor) and trinitrofluorenone (TNF) has been developed.

Controllable supramolecular assembly and architecture transformation by the combination of orthogonal self-assembly and competitive self-sorting assembly

New supramolecular polymers were prepared by the combination of orthogonal self-assembly and competitive self-sorting assembly methods.

On/off fluorescence emission induced by encapsulation, exchange and reversible encapsulation of a BODIPY-guest in self-assembled organometallic cages

A reversible fluorescence turn off/on switch induced by the encapsulation and release of a guest molecule within an organometallic cage was presented.