Self-assembly and molecular recognition of a luminescent gold rectangle

The facile synthesis of a kinetically stable nanoscopic luminescent gold rectangle is demonstrated by the self-assembly between the di-gold(I) chip Au2(u-PAnP)(X)2(X=NO3(super -) or OTf(super -)) and 4,4-bipyridine. A detailed study is conducted on the molecular recognitions of the gold rectangles in the solid state and solution.