The First Coordinatively Saturated,Quadruply Stranded Helicate and Its Encapsulation of a Hexafluorophosphate Anion.

Incarcerated in a helical prison: The encapsulation of a PF₆⁻ ion within a quadruply stranded helicate (shown schematically) results from the self-assembly of four molecules of 1,4-bis(3-pyridyloxy)benzene and two Pd^II ions. This represents not only the first example of a coordinatively saturated quadruple helicate, but also the first example of the encapsulation of a complex anion by a helicate.