Nature 347, 354 - 358 (27 September 1990); doi:10.1038/347354a0

Solid C₆₀: a new form of carbon

W. Krätschmer^*, Lowell D. Lamb^†, K. Fostiropoulos^* & Donald R. Huffman^†

^*Max-Planck-Institut für Kernphysik, 6900 Heidelberg, PO Box 103980, Germany
^†Department of Physics, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA

A new form of pure, solid carbon has been synthesized consisting of a somewhat disordered hexagonal close packing of soccer-ball-shaped C₆₀ molecules. Infrared spectra and X-ray diffraction studies of the molecular packing confirm that the molecules have the anticipated 'fullerene' structure. Mass spectroscopy shows that the C₇₀ molecule is present at levels of a few per cent. The solid-state and molecular properties of C₆₀ and its possible role in interstellar space can now be studied in detail.

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