https://phys.org/news/2018-05-flexible-materials-nano-porous-d-reversible.html

Researchers have developed these materials using flexible and spherical icosahedral boron-based molecules as ligands. "The spherical shape of the ligands is the key factor that enables the structures to go back to their original shape, allowing for the rearrangement of the different parts, and without collapsing the whole structure"says Jose Giner, from the Inorganic Materials and Catalysis Laboratory at the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC).

The material belongs to a class of porous crystalline material formed by the assembly of metal ions or clusters with bridging organic linkers that are called metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). In this study, the use of spherical linkers instead of planar ones could help in stabilizing the flexible structures. "The idea of spherically shaped linkers avoiding collapse of the structure can also be understood like this: two layers will roll over each other if separated by spheres; whereas they will collapse if non-spherical pillars are used," explains Giner.