Fei Jia, Hao-Yi Wang, Dong-Hao Li, Liu-Pan Yang and Wei Jiang
Chem. Commun., 2016,52, 5666-5669
DOI:
10.1039/C6CC01052K,
Communication
The molecular “transformer”, oxatub[4]arene, was found to be able to host a wide range of organic cations. The strong binding ability is believed to originate from its four interconvertible and deep-cavity conformers. The binding behavior of such adaptable receptors may provide implications for molecular recognition in nature.