Chemical and Electrochemical Formation of Pseudorotaxanes Composed of Alkyl(ferrocenylmethyl)ammmonium and Dibenzo[24]crown-8

Ferrocene-Containing Pseudorotaxanes in Crystals: Aromatic Interactions with Hammett Correlation

Single crystals of pseudorotaxanes, [(FcCH₂NH₂CH₂Ar)(DB24C8)][PF₆] (DB24C8 = dibenzo[24]crown-8, Fc = Fe(C₅H₄)(C₅H₅), Ar = -C₆H₃-3,4-Cl₂, -C₆H₃-3,4-F₂, -C₆H₄-4-F, -C₆H₄-4-Cl, -C₆H₄-4-Br, -C₆H₃-3-F-4-Me, -C₆H₄-4-I) and [(FcCH₂NH₂CH₂C₆H₄-4-Me)(DB24C8)][Ni(dmit)₂] (dmit = 1,3-dithiole-2,4,5-dithiolate), were obtained from solutions containing DB24C8 and ferrocenylmethyl(arylmethyl)ammonium. X-ray crystallographic analyses of the pseudorotaxanes revealed that the aryl ring of the axle moiety and the catechol ring of the macrocyclic component were at close centroid distances and parallel or tilted orientation. The structures with parallel aromatic rings showed correlation of the distances between the centroids to Hammett substituent constants of the aryl groups.

Dynamic Pseudorotaxane Crystals Containing Metallocene Complexes

Molecular machines and switches composed of flexible pseudorotaxanes respond to external stimuli, transducing incident energy into mechanical motions. This study presents thermo- and photoresponsive dynamic pseudorotaxane crystals composed of axle molecules containing ferrocene or ruthenocene groups threaded through dibenzo[24]crown-8 ether rings. The ruthenocene-containing pseudorotaxane exhibits a crystal-to-crystal thermal phase transition at 86 °C, which is much lower than that of the ferrocene-containing pseudorotaxane (128 °C). Single-crystal X-ray crystallography at various temperatures reveals the details of the structural changes, and shows that the bulky ruthenocene provides distortion in the pseudorotaxane structure to facilitate twisting of the axle molecule. A mixed ferrocene and ruthenocene pseudorotaxane crystal is applied to photomechanical conversion under 405 nm laser irradiation at 85 °C and provides a lifting force 6,400-times the weight of the crystal itself upon phase transition.

Ferrocene-containing non-interlocked molecular machines

Ferrocene is chemically robust and readily functionalized which enables its facile incorporation into more complex molecular systems. This coupled with ferrocene's reversible redox properties and ability to function as a “molecular ball bearing” has led to the use of ferrocene as a component in wide range of non-interlocked synthetic molecular machine systems.

Thermally-induced phase transition of pseudorotaxane crystals: changes in conformation and interaction of the molecules and optical properties of the crystals

This paper presents a pseudorotaxane that acts as a thermally driven molecular switch in the single-crystal state. Crystals of the cationic pseudorotaxane consisting of dibenzo[24]crown-8 (DB24C8) and N-(xylylammonium)-methylferrocene as the cyclic and axle component molecules, respectively, undergo crystalline-phase transition at 128 °C with heating and 116 °C with cooling, according to differential-scanning-calorimetry measurements. X-ray crystallographic analyses revealed that the phase transition was accompanied by rotation of the 4-methylphenyl group of the axle component molecule and a simultaneous shift in the position of the PF(6)(-) counteranion. Crystalline phase transition changes the conformation and position of the DB24C8 molecule relative to the ammonium cation partially; the interaction between the cyclic component and the PF(6)(-) anion in the crystal changes to a greater extent. Moreover, there are changes in the vibration angle (θ) and birefringence (Δn) on the (001) face of the crystal transitionally; θ is rotated by +12°, and Δn is decreased from 0.070 to 0.059 upon heating across the phase transition temperature. The phase transition and accompanying change in the optical properties of the crystal occur reversibly and repeatedly upon heating and cooling processes. The switching rotation of the aromatic plane of the molecule induces a change in the optical anisotropy of the crystal, which is regarded as a demonstration of a new type of optical crystal. Partial replacement of the PF(6)(-) anion with the bulkier AsF(6)(-) anion forms crystals with similar crystallographic parameters. An increase in the AsF(6)(-) content decreases the reversible-phase-transition temperature gradually down to 99 °C (T(end)) and 68 °C (T(exo)) ([AsF(6)(-)]:[PF(6)(-)] = 0.4:0.6).

Ferrocene-containing [2]- and [3]rotaxanes. Preparation via an end-capping cross-metathesis reaction and electrochemical properties

Cross-metathesis reactions of terminal olefins with acrylic esters catalyzed by a Ru-carbene complex ((H2IMes)(PCy3)Cl2Ru = CHPh, H2IMes = N,N-bis(mesityl)-4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene) were applied to the end-capping of [2]pseudorotaxanes composed of dibenzo[24]crown-8 (DB24C8) and ferrocenylmethylammonium derivatives as the macrocyclic and axle components. A [3]rotaxane consisting of two DB24C8s and an axle molecule having ferrocenyl groups at both ends was obtained from the cross-metathesis reaction of two [2]pseudorotaxanes with Fe(C5H4CH2OCOCH = CH2)2. Cyclic voltammograms of the ferrocene-containing rotaxanes show reversible redox reactions whose potentials vary depending on the presence or absence of cationic dialkylammonium groups in the vicinity of the ferrocene units.

Formation, Dynamic Behavior, and Chemical Transformation of Pt Complexes with a Rotaxane-like Structure

The reaction of [Pt(CH2COMe)(Ph)(cod)] (cod = 1,5-cyclooctadiene) with (ArCH2NH2CH2-C6H4COOH)+ (PF6)- (Ar = 4-tBuC6H4 or 9-anthryl) in the presence of cyclic oligoethers such as dibenzo[24]crown-8 (DB24C8) and dicyclohexano[24]crown-8 (DC24C8) produces {(ce)[ArCH2NH2CH2C6H4COOPt(Ph)(cod)]}+ (PF6)- (ce = DB24C8 or DC24C8, Ar = 4-tBuC6H4 or 9-anthryl) with interlocked structures. FABMS and NMR spectra of a solution of these compounds indicate that the Pt complexes with a secondary ammonium group and DB24C8 (or DC24C8) make up the axis and cyclic components, respectively. Temperature-dependent 1H NMR spectra of a solution of {(DB24C8)[4-tBuC6H4CH2NH2CH2-C6H4COOPt(Ph)(cod)]}+ (PF6)- ({(DB24C8)[4-H]}+ (PF6)-) show equilibration with free DB24C8 and the axis component. The addition of DB24C8 to a solution of {(DC24C8)[4-H]}+ (PF6)- causes partial exchange of the macrocyclic component of the interlocked molecules, giving a mixture of {(DC24C8)[4-H]}+ (PF6)-, {(DB24C8)[4-H]}+ (PF6)-, and free macrocyclic compounds. The reaction of 3,5-Me2C6H3COCl with {(DB24C8)[4-H]}+ (PF6)- affords the organic rotaxane {(DB24C8)(4-tBuC6H4CH2NH2CH2-C6H4COOCOC6H3Me2-3,5)}+ (PF6)- through C-O bond formation between the aroyl group and the carboxylate ligand of the axis component. The addition of 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) to a solution of {(DB24C8)[4-H]}+ (PF6)- induces the degradation of the interlocked structure to form a complex with trigonal bipyramidal coordination, [Pt(Ph)(bpy)(cod)]+ (PF6)-, whereas the reaction of bpy with [Pt(OCOC6H4Me-4)(Ph)(cod)] produces the square-planar complex [Pt(OCOC6H4Me-4)(Ph)(bpy)].