Fig. 3.

The preformed supramolecular tubules remain in an out-of-equilibrium kinetic trap. (A) We monitor the evolution of the CD signal after mixing a 1:1 ratio of preformed chiral tubules from 1 (2.5 µM) and preformed achiral tubules from 2 (2.5 µM) and compare the dynamic behavior in either pure water (black line) or in water/acetonitrile 95/5 (red line). Over 24 h, chiral amplification is apparent in water/acetonitrile and is translated into a gradual increase of CD signal, which indicates that the chiral and achiral building blocks are mixing to form a larger number of chiral tubes (i.e., the system displays a sergeants and soldiers effect). In stark contrast, chiral amplification is not observed in water. The absence of chiral amplification indicates that in water exchange between the building blocks, which the tubules are composed of, does not occur. These data indicate that in water and over the timescale of the measurements, the structure of the tubules is kinetically trapped at room temperature. (B) CD signal of 1 recorded at λ = 390 nm in water (2.5 µM), for varying temperatures.