Graphical Abstract

Nanosiences are opening a wide future to chemistry and particularly to organosilicon chemistry, the flexibility of which is particularly well adapted to the design of materials. However, in this scope the chemists have to ‘think’ their chemistry in terms of properties (physical, chemical, biological…).

Graphical Abstract

In the solid-state, the first organotin double ladder having an ether group within the spacer shows an interlaminar cavity whose size and shape suggest the possibility of host–guest chemistry. However, due to extensive dissociation in solution only minimal interactions are observed with added Li⁺, Na⁺, Mg²⁺ or Cu²⁺ cations.

Graphical abstract

The role of nature and amount of guest species on their respective localisation Evidence for full delocalisation of copper ions and diffusion pathways visualisation

Graphical Abstract

Twenty-vertex [(PPh₃)₄ClPd₄B₁₆H₁₇(PPh₃)], from the thermolysis of [(PPh₃)₂PdB₈H₁₂] in refluxing toluene solution, has a core nido five-vertex {Pd₂B₃} unit that has opposing triangular faces in common with an arachno ten-vertex {Pd₂B₈} unit and a nido eleven-vertex {Pd₃B₈} unit.