Self-Assembly of Infinite Double Helical and Tubular Coordination Polymers from Ag(CF3SO3) and 1,3-Bis(4-pyridyl)propane

Three 1D coordination polymers were obtained from Ag(CF3SO3) and the conformationally flexible bidentate ligand 1,3-bis(4-pyridyl)propane (bpp), [Ag(bpp)](CF3SO3)·EtOH (1), [Ag(bpp)](CF3SO3) (2), and [Ag2(bpp)4](CF3SO3)2·bpp (3), the latter two exhibiting quite uncommon structural motifs. 2 contains an infinite double helical polymer, comprised of two chains of the type present in 1, and is the first example of a cationic infinite discrete double helix in coordination polymer chemistry. 3 contains a novel 1D polymer, comprised of interconnected macrocycles to give an infinite tubular shape. Uncoordinated bpp molecules are located inside the tubules, threading the rings in a pseudorotaxane-like manner.