Supramolecular one-dimensional objects

Preparing polymer-like materials through supramolecular chemistry is an area of growing interest, yet full understanding of how non-covalent forces may be used to prepare such materials is lacking and as a result the success of these strategies is often serendipitous. Recent examples of discrete one-dimensional supramolecular fibers employing the most important types of non-covalent interactions (metal coordination, hydrogen bonding, pi-pi stacking, hydrophobic effect) illustrate our current ability to prepare these types of materials and point the way for future designs. (C) 2001 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.