Anca Bogdan

Topologically novel multiple rotaxanes and catenanes based on tetraurea calix[4]arenes

Calix[4]arenes bearing at their wide rim four urea residues easily form hydrogen bonded dimeric capsules. This has been used to preorganise alkenyl functions attached to these urea groups for their controlled connection via metathesis reaction. Multimacrocyclic tetraurea derivatives are thus obtained in excellent yields via heterodimers which are formed exclusively with tetratosylurea derivatives. Heterodimerisation of such bis- and tetraloop tetraureas leads analogously to multicatenanes, or to rotaxanes by stoppering. Huge macrocycles are detached from tetraloop derivatives by cleavage of the urea function.

Molecules with New Topologies Derived from Hydrogen‐Bonded Dimers of Tetraurea Calix[4]arenes

Tetraurea calix[4]arenes 2 have been synthesized in which two adjacent aryl urea residues are connected to a loop by an aliphatic chain -O-(CH(2))(n)-O-. The remaining urea residues have a bulky 3,5-di-tert-butylphenyl residue and an omega-alkenyloxyphenyl residue. Since this bulky residue cannot pass through the loop, only one homodimer (22) is formed in apolar solvents, for steric reasons, in which the two alkenyl residues penetrate the two macrocyclic loops. Covalent connection of these alkenyl groups by olefin metathesis followed by hydrogenation creates compounds 3, which consist of molecules with hitherto unknown topology. Their molecular structure was confirmed by (1)H NMR spectroscopy and ESIMS, and for one example by single-crystal X-ray analysis.

Template synthesis of multi-macrocycles by metathesis reactionElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: 1H NMR and ESI-MS spectra of multi-macrocycles 4 and 5. See http://www.rsc.org/suppdata/cc/b4/b402719a/ Dedicated to Julius Rebek, Jr. on the occasion of his 60th birthday.

Selective heterodimerisation of tetraurea calix[4]arenes containing four or eight ω-alkenyl groups with a tetratosyl urea calix[4]arene has been effectively used to synthesize multi-macrocycles via metathesis reaction.