Chemistry – A European Journal

A multiresponsive pseudorotaxane, composed by a dansyl calix[6]arene and a bipyridinium axle, is presented. The disassembly of this complex can be triggered by: i) protonation of the dansyl units (chemical stimulus); ii) electrochemical reduction of the bipyridinium unit (electrochemical stimulus); iii) photochemical reduction of the bipyridinium unit, enabled by photoinduced electron transfer from the dansyl units (light stimulus). Overall, three orthogonal and reversible stimuli can be employed to control the stability of this novel pseudorotaxane.