functions, for potential applications in optically addressable mat-
erials. The question is how much we can rationalize the behavior
and predict the structures and their properties on the basis of
the design.
Keywords:Self-assembly; Luminescence; Metal complexes; Soft
Assemblies; Self-organization.
I. IntroductionPhotochemical processes in complex-ordered materials are
responsible for life as we know it on our planet's surface. Under-
standing how light can be absorbed, produced, or transformed in
chemical species in assembled components is a major goal involv-
ing numerous scientists from different disciplines.
Self-assembly is a nature-inspired process, in which small
molecules spontaneously arrange in an ordered fashion, leading
to functional structures displaying characteristics which are not
present at the level of individual molecules. The information
contained within the structure of the small entities is translated
into complex functions through the cooperative interactions
between these building blocks. To obtain the desired output,
the components must be chosen with great care and organized
in space, energy, and time. Self-assembly can facilitate the con-
struction of complex systems without employing covalent
linkages between subunits, which otherwise would require
demanding synthetic procedures and difficult purification steps.
Further, a variety of different architectures can be set up with
few building blocks that can be repeatedly combined in different
ways, just as observed in natural photosystems. The organiza-
tion in large structures in which intermolecular and noncovalent
bonds between two or more chemical entities have been formed is
part of supramolecular chemistry defined as chemistry beyond
the molecules(1,2).
Several artificial systems in which intermolecular and non-
covalent bonds between two or more chemical entities have been
formed have been reported. The driving forces which hold
together these entities are mainly dealing with electrostatic
interactions, metal coordination, hydrogen bond, pāp stacking
as well as hydrophobic, van der Waals, and dispersion
interactions. Therefore, such concept has paved the way for
designing and building systems with specific and novel features,
whose properties could be far beyond the simple sum of
48 CRISTIAN A. STRASSERTet al.