The synthesis and application of the catenane

Abstract

Over the past six decades, research on catenanes and application of catenanes have become more and more mature. Catenane is a mechanically interlocking molecule containing two or more interlocking macrocyclic molecules. The interlocking rings cannot be separated unless the covalent bonds within the ring molecules are broken. This review will introduce the definition of the catenane and a brief history of its research, the two common synthetic mechanisms: self-assembly and template synthesis. The supramolecular principles underlying the different templates are introduced like π-π stacking, Hydrophobic interaction, hydrogen bond, coordination bond and the results of the experiments are presented. The differences between the two mechanisms as well as the different templates are analyzed through data, and finally the main applications of catenanes  related to molecular machines are presented .Therefore, through this review, I hope that readers will learn about an interesting and fascinating molecule, and its promising future research and development space.