Cubic Diamond Lattice Metal-Organic Framework

Background

Synthesized metal-organic frameworks have been shown to have a wide range of applications, as highlighted three chemists doing seminal work in this field being awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2025.

Here the crystal structure of a cubic diamond metal-organic framework is featured; the CSD entry JARMEU^[1].

This is the structure that revealed that a crystalline, diamondoid, extended framework was formed that had large cavities, establishing this class of solid polymeric materials.

A cubic diamond lattice metal-organic framework

Shown at the right is the building block of the lattice ().

C, N, Cu

The metal here is copper.

When the repeats of this building block are shown connected to others, the crystalline lattice appears. Viewing the illustrates this.

When considered this way a beautiful diamondoid structure appears that is a 4-connected network.
The large cavities are visible as the lattice layers onto itself as the view of the structure rotates.
The cavities would contain anions and solvent that are not shown in this crystal structure as they'd be freely moving and randomly distributed.

The extensive crystalline nature with the large cavities becomes more apparent if we consider more of the repeated building blocks.

. (Substantial patience required when loading this scene; it is suggested to only do that after you have examined the others.)
If you don't want to wait for it to rotate around to emphasize the cavities, scroll down...



This gif features the animation in the view of 1x3x3 plane: