title: Stiff, and sticky in the right places: binding interactions in isolated mechanically interlocked molecules probed by mid-infrared spectroscopy.
abstract: We report the results of high-resolution spectroscopic studies on isolated, jet-cooled [2]rotaxanes. Employing IR absorption spectroscopy, we show how these noncovalently bound, multicomponent molecular systems that so far have been out of reach from high-resolution techniques, can now be characterized at an unprecedented level. IR absorption spectra of prototypical hydrogen-bond assembled rotaxanes as well as their associated threads and macrocycles are shown to provide a direct view on the effects of interlocking the macrocycle and thread, and to offer a straightforward approach for the study of their structural and dynamical properties.
authors.affiliation: University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Achtergracht 166, 1018 WV Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Anouk M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Rijs
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Compagnon
authors.forename: Jos
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Oomens
authors.forename: Jeffrey S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hannam
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Leigh
authors.forename: Wybren J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Buma