METAL-BASED MOLECULAR CHAINS: DESIGN BY COORDINATION CHEMISTRY

Abstract

Molecular extended metal atom chains (EMACs) or “molecular chains” are discrete molecules exhibiting arrays of closely spaced metals in a nearly straight fashion. Such species are gaining momentum as possible crucial components of molecular functional devices. The synthetic strategies for the preparation of such species have diversified over the years. The existing strategies rely either on the formation of “unsupported” metal-metal bonds or depend entirely on the ability of specifically designed ligands to promote the assembly of metals in desired topologies. In this review, a summary of the methods employed for the preparation of molecular EMACs is presented, and several important examples are described.