The Catalytic Properties of a Copper‐Based Nanoscale Coordination Polymer Fabricated by a Solvent‐Etching Top‐Down Route

Manipulating particle size is a powerful means of creating unprecedented applications in both inorganic and organic materials. Coordination polymers, which are emerging as a type of organic–inorganic hybrid materials, have attracted thriving interest in a variety of applications, but nanoscale coordination polymers have scarcely been touched. In this work, the pure‐phase {Cu 6 [1,4‐bis(imidazol‐1‐yl)butane] 3 I 6 } ∞ coordination polymer with different sizes and morphologies was synthesized for the first time through a facile top‐down route assisted by solvent etching. The size and morphology could be adjusted simply by varying the participating etching solvents. Our mechanistic investigations suggest that the bulk coordination polymer as a precursor in the etching solvents may experience a process of dispersion, dissolution, and recrystallization to generate the nanoscale counterpart. High catalytic activity of the nanoscale coordination polymer was observed in the N ‐arylation of imidazole aryl halides, and this was attributed to a high surface area and a low coordination number of unsaturated coordination sites. This simple and rapid preparation, requiring neither specialized equipment nor harsh conditions, suggests a wealth of potential for reducing the size of coordination polymers to comply with various practical applications.