A versatile and conformationally adaptable fluorene-based receptor for efficient binding of silver cation.

We have designed and synthesized a versatile fluorene-based receptor (1) in a one-pot reaction from readily available precursors, which adapts a deltaphane- or pi-prismand-like conformer via a simple C-C bond rotation. Such a conformational adaptability of 1 allows it to bind a single silver cation with remarkable efficiency (K approximately 15 000 M-1) as monitored by 1H NMR or UV-vis spectroscopy and further confirmed by competition experiments with tris[2.2.2]paracyclophane (or pi-prismand 2) as well as a model compound 3 containing only one fluoranyl ring.