The consequences of chirality in crowded arenes--macromolecular helicity, hierarchical ordering, and directed assembly.

Complex three-dimensional superstructures with useful properties[1] can be created easily by reversibly assembling functionalized small molecules through hydrogen bonding and overlap.[2] Examples are 1a and 1b (Figure 1a), which self-assemble through head-to-tail amide hydrogen bonds into arrays of stacked columns (Figure 1b, c).[3] In these molecules, the dodecyl ether substituents provide a liquidlike environment, while at the same time they force the amide groups out