Hierarchical chiral expression from the nano- to mesoscale in synthetic supramolecular helical fibers of a nonamphiphilic C3-symmetrical π-functional molecule.

The controlled preparation of chiral structures is a contemporary challenge for supramolecular science because of the interesting properties that can arise from the resulting materials, and here we show that a synthetic nonamphiphilic C(3) compound containing π-functional tetrathiafulvalene units can form this kind of object. We describe the synthesis, characterization, and self-assembly properties in solution and in the solid state of the enantiopure materials. Circular dichroism (CD) measurements show optical activity resulting from the presence of twisted stacks of preferential helicity and also reveal the critical importance of fiber nucleation in their formation. Molecular mechanics (MM) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations combined with CD theoretical calculations demonstrate that the (S) enantiomer provides the (M) helix, which is more stable than the (P) helix for this enantiomer. This relationship is for the first time established in this family of C(3) symmetric compounds. In addition, we show that introduction of the "wrong" enantiomer in a stack decreases the helical reversal barrier in a nonlinear manner, which very probably accounts for the absence of a "majority rules" effect. Mesoscopic chiral fibers, which show inverted helicity, i.e. (P) for the (S) enantiomer and (M) for the (R) one, have been obtained upon reprecipitation from dioxane and analyzed by optical and electronic microscopy. The fibers obtained with the racemic mixture present, as a remarkable feature, opposite homochiral domains within the same fiber, separated by points of helical reversal. Their formation can be explained through an "oscillating" crystallization mechanism. Although C(3) symmetric disk-shaped molecules containing a central benzene core substituted in the 1,3,5 positions with 3,3'-diamido-2,2'-bipyridine based wedges have shown peculiar self-assembly properties for amphiphilic derivatives, the present result shows the benefits of reducing the nonfunctional part of the molecule, in our case with short chiral isopentyl chains. The research reported herein represents an important step toward the preparation of functional mesostructures with controlled helical architectures.

Synthesis, structural analysis, and chiral investigations of some atropisomers with EE-tetrahalogeno-1,3-butadiene core.

The atropenantiomers of stable 1,2,3,4-tetrahalo-1,3-butadiene derivatives (where halogeno stands for bromine or iodine) were separated with use of chiral HPLC. The barriers for the enantiomerization process were determined on-line by dynamic HPLC (DHPLC) or off-line by classical kinetic measurements. In the case of the tetrachloro compound, the barrier was too low for DHPLC and its value was obtained by dynamic NMR experiments. The obtained barriers for chloro, bromo, and iodo derivatives correlate with the van der Waals radii of the halogens. The absolute configuration of the isolated enantiomers of the tetraiodo and tetrabromo compounds was assigned by comparison of the experimental and conformations averaged calculated VCD spectra. The identification of a signature band of the absolute configuration of the butadiene core, the sign and location of which are independent from the different conformations and substituents, allowing the safe assignment of the absolute configuration of the enantiomers of chiral 1,3-butadienes, is also reported.