Lecture: 'Supramolecular helical systems for the development of unique chiral materials'

Here we show unique macromolecules that fold into a preferred-handed helical conformation induced by chiral substituents covalently bonded to the main-chains or external chiral stimuli followed by memory of the helicalchirality, which provide useful chiral materials for separating enantiomers as well as asymmetric catalysis. The helicity induction and memory strategy has a remarkable advantage from a practical viewpoint such that a preferred-handed helicity can be induced in commodity plastics, such as syndiotactic poly(methylmethacrylate) (st-PMMA). The direct observations of helical structures of synthetic helical polymers by atomic force microscopy (AFM) will be also presented. A series of double helices composed of different components and sequences that exhibit specific functions, such as chiral recognition, enantioselective asymmetric catalysis and anisotropic spring-like motion are also described.

About

Eiji Yashima received his Bachelor of Science, Master of Science and Ph.D. (1988) from Osaka University. In 1986, he joined Kagoshima University. After a postdoc with David Tirrell at UMass (1988-1989), he moved to Nagoya University in 1991 and was promoted to a full Professor in 1998. He was the project leader of the ERATO Project (JST) on "Yashima Super-Structured Helix" (2002-2007).

He received the SPSJ Wiley Polymer Science Award in 2000, the Japan IBM Science Award in 2001, Molecular Chirality Award in 2005, Thomson Scientific Research Front Award in 2007, the Award of the Society of Polymer Science, Japan, in 2008, Chirality Medal in 2013, the Chemical Society of Japan Award in 2015 and Medal with Purple Ribbon in 2017.

He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and an associate member of the Science Council of Japan. He has published over 330 papers including 23 reviews and contributed to write 13 chapters in books. His current research interests are in the design and synthesis of helical molecules, supramolecules and polymers with novel structures and functions.