This award in the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry Program supports research in the laboratories of Dr. M. Frederick Hawthorne at the University of California, Los Angeles. The research to be performed involves the development of macromolecular assemblies based upon icosahedral carboranes. Utilizing nucleophilic substitution, dicarbollide preparation, or electrophilic halogenation, ortho-, meta-, and para-icosahedral carboranes will be functionalized with hydrophobic or hydrophilic moieties. Linear assemblies, carborods, will be synthesized using para-carboranes alone or in combination with linear-bifunctional linking groups. The ionic association and thermotropic liquid-crystal characteristics of carborods will be examined. Cyclic assemblies, carboracycles and mercuracarborands, will be synthesized using ortho- or meta- carboranes and bifunctional-spacer groups. The host-guest interactions, electrophilic catalytic activity, and lyotropic liquid-crystal characteristics of carboracycles and mercuracarborands will be investigated. Additional research topics include the functionalization of decakismethyl para-carborane and investigation of dicarbollide reactivity. Exploration of molecular self-assembly will lead to the development of unique molecular architectures and advance our understanding of the interrelationship of structure and function. This research may lead to the development of analytical probes for molecular recognition and new catalysts.
