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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Pillar[n]arenes-a Novel, Highly Promising Class of Macrocyclic Host Molecules

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description

Since 2008 a new field of supramolecular chemistry has developed rapidly: the chemistry of pillar[n]arenes. These “younger brothers and sisters” of calixarenes are conveniently accessible and extremely guest-friendly. Guests from many different classes of organic compounds are welcome. Nevertheless, a high selectivity for the threading of guest molecules in the macrocyclic cavities can be achieved. The complex stability is characterized by association constants Ka between 10 and 1×108 M−1. The rate constants of the threading vary over several orders of magnitude. The focus of this article lies on the preparation (sections 2 and 3) and the structures (section 4) of pillar[n]arenes (n=5–10) in solution and in the solid state. A further important point concerns the complexation and its selectivity (section 5). Only some new or outstanding examples are discussed in section 6 on self-assembly and aggregation.