Metal ion adaptive self-assembly of photoactive lanthanide-based supramolecular hosts.

A post-synthetic transmetallation self-assembly strategy was developed for the preparation of near infrared (NIR) emitting YbL cubes, which could not be synthesized through direct metal-ligand assembly procedures. Metal-adaptive critical structural transformations from LaL triangular prism to LnL cubes were observed along the lanthanide series, the latter of which showed size-selective guest binding behaviour toward poly-aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules.