Novel phosphorus rich complexes and their use in supramolecular chemistry

This thesis is concerned with the synthesis of novel phosphorus ligand complexes and their use as connecting moieties between varied metal centers to form supramolecular aggregates and networks.

For the synthesis of phosphorus ligand complexes different methods were developed, which made a variety of cyclic phosphorus ligand complexes accessible. Moreover, the activation and transformation of white phosphorus in the coordination sphere of cobalt metal complexes provided a new pathway to extended polyphosphorus frameworks.

Investigations into preparing supramolecular assemblies using specially designed phosphorus ligand complexes as building blocks led to the isolation and characterization of spherical aggregates as well as polymeric coordination compounds. It was demonstrated that the self-assembly process can be directed by the geometry of the phosphorus ligand and the additional organic substituents at the metal atoms to form highly symmetric, soluble, nanoscale molecules.