[o-C₂B₁₀H₁₀]₃ as a trimer aggregate of spherical aromatic carboranes. Persistence and interplay between spherical aromatic states

Envisaging cluster-based materials requires a fundamental understanding of the aggregation processes and resulting properties. The inherent spherical aromatic properties of carboranes trigger further evaluation of the persistence of such property in the resulting cluster aggregate. Here, we evaluated the formation of a trimeric species based on the neutral [o-C₂B₁₀H₁₂] cluster on the [o-C₂B₁₀H₁₀]₃ form. The obtained results show that the inherent spherical aromatic characteristics of the constituent building units remain in the resulting trimer aggregate as three spherical aromatic states. Thus, cluster-based materials can be envisaged from stable spherical aromatic units, guiding further experimental realization of cluster-based aggregates.