Adsorption of anthracene substitutes into suprachannels: bulk vs. included guests

Self-assembly of Ag(i) cations with N,N′,N′′-tris(2-(pyridin-4-yl)ethyl)-1,3,5-benzenetricarboxamide (L) produces new 2D metal-organic networks with 108-membered rings, [Ag₃L₂]. The 2D networks are interlayer-packed, which results in the formation of hydrophobic suprachannels (19.2 × 27.6 Å). Around each silver(i) ion, triflate counteranions are confined (2.93(1)-3.041(9) Å), thus the hydrophobic suprachannels effectively adsorb a wide range of anthracene substitutes in either a monomeric or an excimeric mode, which makes them potentially useful as energy-transfer materials.