Architectural Chirality in a Metal–Organic Framework Superstructure

• Published in: Crystal growth & design Vol. 22; no. 11; pp. 6456 - 6460
• Main Authors: Collet, Guillaume, Foucher, Frédéric, Hrvat, Antonio, Westall, Frances, Besnard, Céline, Petoud, Stéphane
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Chemical Society 02-11-2022
• Subjects: Chemical Sciences; Condensed Matter; Cristallography; Materials Science; Physics
• ISSN: 1528-7483; 1528-7505
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.cgd.2c00621

While complexity is observed everywhere in living organisms, it remains an outstanding challenge to establish controlled synthetic approaches allowing one to obtain a high level of programmed organization. Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) belong to a fascinating family of materials with which it is possible to obtain different levels of structural configuration in the context of hierarchical organization. This work reports the first case of a chiral architectural hierarchy generated from a nonchiral MOF. The complete sequence of steps leading to the creation of MOF-spheroids with either left or right windings of crystallites was followed by real-time optical microscopy. This imaging experiment includes detailed observations of the delicate equilibrium between crystal nucleation and their growth. Direct and real-time observation during the entire process allows verification of the hypotheses driving the formation of the structured MOF by shedding light on each individual event.