Self-Assembly of a Unique Extended-Tetrahedral 3,3‘,5,5‘-Tetrakis(4-pyridyl)bimesityl Ligand into Discrete Supramolecular Cubes by Face-Directed Metal Coordination

Twelve unique D2d-symmetric extended-tetrahedral tetrapyridylbimesityl ligands 1 and six metal cations (Ni2+ and Cu2+) assemble to generate discrete cubic architectures with an Oh symmetry, as revealed by X-ray crystallographic analyses. The internal cavity dimensions of the cubes are in excess of ca. 3000 Å3. The metal-organic cuboid discrete cages with such large internal cavity have been characterized by X-ray crystallography for the first time.