The book highlights recent prominent results in the domain of the synthesis of new polyoxometalates with a specific attention to polyoxothioanions, and provides some novelties and perspectives in selected domains such as magnetism, luminescence and nanochemistry, and macroions self-assembly in solutions. The case of “one-pot” syntheses often used and reported in POMs synthesis is studied in terms of more complex solution speciation processes related to highly dynamical situation connected to factors such as pH, ionic strength, reaction time, temperature, counterion nature, concentration of starting materials, presence of electron donors and redox potentials. The behavior of macroions (2nm-6nm size range) in solution is shown to be quite different from the simple ionic solution or colloidal systems (Debye-Huckel model). Their self-assembling into a single-layered, spherical, hollow vesicle structure, namely the “blackberry” structure, is clearly described. Examples of spin clusters with tunable interactions are given and single molecule magnets based on POMs are specifically tackled. Besides paramagnetic transition metal centres and lanthanoid ions encapsulated in archetypal lacunary polyoxoanions, magnetically functionalized Kleperates are described, their discovery tracing back nearly 15 years.
