Open versus Interpenetrated: Switchable Supramolecular Trajectories in Mechanosynthesis of a Halogen-Bonded Borromean Network

Precise control over topologically intricate molecular architectures remains an open challenge for chemists due to their inherent structural complexity. We report a simple solvent-free strategy to selectively prepare two multi-component supramolecular crystalline systems based on the halogen bond, endowed with either an unknot topology or a Borromean-type entanglement. Real-time in situ monitoring of the solvent-free mechanochemical synthesis of these three-component halogen-bonded ionic co-crystals reveals that the choice of milling conditions leads to a switch in the supramolecular reaction trajectory, resulting in the selective formation of an open halogen-bonded network or a halogen-bonded Borromean-type assembly.