Exploiting cavities in supramolecular gels.

Endowing supramolecular gelators with cavities opens up a number of opportunities not possible with other gel systems. The well-established host-guest chemistry of cavitands can be utilized to build up and break down gel structures, introduce responsive functionalities, or enhance selectivity in applications such as catalysis and extraction. Cavity-containing gelators provide an excellent case study for how different aspects of supramolecular chemistry can be used intelligently to create responsive materials.