Systems chemistry is a research area in the molecular sciences involving the evolution of individual molecules into functional multicomponent systems, by employing relatively weak supramolecular interactions. Taking the complex systems from nature as a blueprint, it is a challenge to create functional structures from ensembles of molecular components, which spontaneously organize themselves via different hierarchical growth processes, involving cooperativity and multivalency.
This course will give a detailed overview of supramolecular interactions, such as hydrogen bonding, π-π stacking, and van der Waals, and the application of these interactions in processes like host-guest chemistry and molecular self-assembly. It will be shown how these processes can be modelled and interpreted, and how they can lead to the development of new, smart systems in areas of catalysis, photophysics, data storage, molecular electronics and autonomous systems.