Molecular Spur Gears Based on a Switchable Quinquepyridine Foldamer Acting as a Stator.

Two triptycene rotators have been covalently linked to the backbone of a quinquepyridine (QPY) foldamer at the second and fourth pyridine rings, respectively, to form molecular spur gears. The studies revealed that a QPY foldamer as a stator can reversibly control the intermeshed and demeshed states of molecular spur gears due to the linear-to-helical conformational switching triggered by complexation/decomplexation.