Themed collection Articles behind the 2025 journal covers

Factors influencing Keggin polyoxometalate species interaction with small peptide molecules have been summarized providing models for investigation of mineral nanoparticle–protein interactions.

This highlight explores the key role of thiophene-based compounds in organic electronics, sensors, medicinal chemistry, solid-state reactions, crystal engineering, and supramolecular helices, using X-ray, DFT, and microscopy techniques.

A fascinating supramolecular-organic framework (SOF) self-assembles from a chiral naturally occurring lanostane compound extracted from the Thai plant Miliusa sessilis.

Self-assembly reactions of ditopic O₃S₂-macrocycle (L) with a lead(II) salt afforded an unsymmetrically sandwiched complex, including an edge-to-face mode as the first non-soft metal species in this category.

Herein, we report on the influence of size- and shape-dependent molecular affinity on the supramolecular self-assembly in the solid state of prism[n]arene-alkyl dibromide (n = 5, 6) systems.

We demonstrate the application of the ‘instantaneous pK’ approach to the molecular dynamics simulation of crystallite models exposed to an acidic solvent environment.

A solid-state study of the weak non-covalent interactions in p-C₆F₄Cl₂ and C₆F₅Cl reveals complex phase behaviour in the latter. The disordered form II of C₆F₅Cl is isomorphous to the crystal structure of p-C₆F₄Cl₂.

This study systematically investigates the effects of substrate surface structures on the physical properties of perovskite (PV)/brownmillerite (BM) superlattices.

Twisted cholesterol spherulites are stained by coumarin to explore their microstructures.

This research explores the transformation of biogenic CaCO₃ microparticles (Ø < 45 μm) from oyster shell waste into luminescent Eu- or Tb-doped calcium phosphate (apatites), using a sustainable “one-step” and eco-friendly method.

Two 2D MOFs were isolated using cis-5-norbornene-endo-2,3-dicarboxylic acid emit near white-light (Pb-MOF) and blue-light (Zn-MOF) due to the structural variation and local metal-centered and ligand-to-metal charge transfer.

Crystallization of 2-ethylanilinium chloride produces chiral and polar fibrous crystals composed of a helical ammonium halide framework.

Ligand transformations are observed in the coordination polymers constructed from bis-pyridyl-bis-amides (L¹–L⁵) and 1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarboxylic acid.

A thermal activation-based theoretical model incorporating the stacking fault energy and surface energy as pivotal parameters can effectively predict the yield stress of the RHEAs in the IHP stage and can be extended to other BCC metals.

The attractive nature of type II C–F⋯F–C interaction has been established using experimental and theoretical modelling of electron densities using multipole modelling of high-resolution X-ray diffraction data and theoretical structure factors.