Collective buckling in metal-organic framework materials

Journal article, 2026

We develop a framework to describe collective buckling in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). Starting from the microscopic structure of a single organic linker, we define a buckling coordinate governed by an effective double-well potential. Coupling between linkers is introduced within a dipole-dipole approximation, resulting in an effective lattice Hamiltonian. We analyze the transition between ordered and disordered phases within a mean-field approximation and estimate the critical temperature. As an illustrative example for our theory, we discuss the collective buckling instability for the prototypical cubic framework MOF-5 under different values of uniaxial strain. Our approach provides a quantitative description of collective buckling in framework materials.