Thursday, June 19, 2008

Macrocycles

Macrocycles are very useful in supramolecular chemistry, as they provide whole cavities that can completely surround guest molecules and may be chemically modified to fine-tune their properties.
Cyclodextrins, calixarenes, cucurbiturils and crown ethers are readily synthesized in large quantities, and are therefore convenient for use in supramolecular systems.
More complex cyclophanes, and cryptands can be synthesized to provide more taliored recognition properties.

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