Supramolecular control of spin exchange in a spin-labelled [2]rotaxane incorporating a tetrathiafulvalene unit.

The EPR properties of a novel triradical obtained by single-electron oxidation of a nitroxide-spin-labelled rotaxane containing a tetrathiafulvalene unit and cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) ring is reported. Rotaxanation is proved to have a dramatic effect on through-space magnetic interactions between radical fragments. Analysis of the EPR spectra by a three-jump model, allowed us to obtain structural information on the interlocked structure.