Macrocycle-based metal ion complexation: a study of the lanthanide contraction effect towards hexacyclohexanocucurbit[6]uil

In the present study, the lanthanide(III) contraction effect induced coordination architectures of HCyHQ[6] have been studied. The results, including fifteen crystal structures, indicate that although lanthanide metal ions have similar chemical properties mostly, their slightly different ionic radii play a key role in the formation of different supramolecular self-assembly types of HCyHQ[6]. As a result, the ionic radius-dependent complexes of HCyHQ[6] can be structurally classified into four groups: HCyHQ[6]-pair, HCyHQ[6]-molecular bowl, Ln–HCyHQ[6] one dimensional coordination polymer, and HCyHQ[6]-molecular capsule.