Construction, substitution, and sorting of metallo-organic structures via subcomponent self-assembly

The construction of complex architectures from simple building blocks is feasible using subcomponent self-assembly by forming covalent bonds around metal templates. Several rearrangement reactions involving substitution at both intraligand and metal-ligand bonds are possible as both covalent and coordinative bonds are formed reversibly, as also parallel preparation of structures from nonorthogonal combinations of subcomponents.