Versatile Dynamic Covalent Assemblies for Probing π-Stacking and Chirality Induction from Homotopic Faces.

Herein we report for the first time the use of dynamic covalent reactions (DCRs) for building a π-stacking model system and further quantifying its substituent effects (SEs), which remain a topic of debate despite the rich history of stacking. A general DCR between 10-methylacridinium ion and primary amines was discovered, in which π-stacking played a stabilizing role. Facile quantification of SEs with in situ competing π-stacking systems was next achieved in the form of amine exchange exhibiting structural diversity by simply varying components. The linear correlation with σ in Hammett plots indicates the dominance of purely electrostatic SEs, and the additivity of SEs is in line with the direct interaction model. With α-chiral amines π-stacking within the adduct enabled chirality transfer from homotopic faces. The strategy of dynamic covalent assembly should be appealing to future research of probing weak interactions and manipulating chirality.