Synthesis and X-ray crystallographic analysis of chiral pyridyl substituted carbocyclic molecular clefts

Ditopic symmetrical bis(pyridyl) ligands incorporating the chiral dibenzobicyclo[b,f][3.3.1]nona-5a,6a-diene-6,12-dione cleft have been synthesised and characterised by NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and X-ray crystallography. The ligands, which incorporate pyridyl groups directly connected to the carbocyclic cleft core or via alkyne or phenyl linkers were accessed from palladium-catalysed coupling reactions of 2,8-dibromodibenzobicyclo[b,f][3.3.1]nona-5a,6a-diene-6,12-dione. X-ray crystal analyses show the interplanar angles between the two cleft aromatic rings in these molecules, which range from 97.80(3) to 109.80(4)°.