Towards new materials via self-assembly cage compounds, coordination polymers, discs, and screws

Attempts to directly double-deprotonate malonic esters to the corresponding dianions, then quenching the reaction with oxalyl chloride, led finally to the one-pot synthesis of tetranuclear chelate complexes, formed by self-as sembly. Their structure unequivocally is established by X-ray analyses. Hig hlight among these species is an overall neutral mixed-valence. tetranuclea r iron chelate cluster. The alkali cation captured within the cage compensa tes for the excess negative charge. On the basis of these results, the pred ictable nature of coordination chemistry has been applied successfully for the specific generation of the metalla-topomers of the well known organic-b ased coronates, (2)-cryptates, and (3)-cryptates. Consequently, tetrazolyle noles, originally prepared for totally different purposes, offered an addit ional property and were used as chelating ligands for the generation of one -, two-, and three-dimensional coordination polymers, characterised by X-ra y structure analyses.