Homochiral helical metal-organic frameworks of potassium.

Two trifunctional ligands built from enantiopure amino acids and containing a 1,8-naphthalimide group have been used to prepare two new complexes of potassium that have extended structures based on homochiral-rod secondary building units. One structure is a three-dimensional metal-organic framework (MOF), while the other is a two-dimensional solid that is organized into a supramolecular MOF by strong π···π-stacking interactions of the naphthalimide groups in the third dimension.