Recent Advances in the Dynamics of Single Crystal to Single Crystal Transformations in Metal–Organic Open Frameworks

Abstract

Single crystal to single crystal transformations have been the subject of growing interest in recent years. In this article, several examples of single crystal to single crystal transformations that occur in metal–organic open frameworks (MOFs) upon guest removal and rebinding, guest exchange, and chemical oxidation are introduced. Depending on the structures of the MOFs, host framework structures can be retained or altered upon guest removal. When host framework structures are altered, significant rearrangements of the molecular components, which involve sponge-like shrinkage/swelling, sliding, swing, bending, and/or rotational motions, occurs throughout the entire crystal to retain the single crystallinity.