Metal organic framework materials form as three-dimensional network structures with metal cations linked via organic ligands. One example is zinc imadazolate, in which the zinc cations are tetrahedrally coordinated to the imadazolate ligands to form structures that are analogous to phases of silicates, including zeolite structures. The elusive structure is the amorphous analogue of silica, which cannot be formed by freezing from the melt.
