C60.avi

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fullerene
A fullerene is any molecule composed entirely of carbon, in the form of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, or tube. Spherical fullerenes are also called buckyballs, and cylindrical ones are called carbon nanotubes or buckytubes. Fullerenes are similar in structure to graphite, which is composed of stacked graphene sheets of linked hexagonal rings; but they may also contain pentagonal (or sometimes heptagonal) rings.[1]

The first fullerene to be discovered, and the family's namesake, buckminsterfullerene (C60), was prepared in 1985 by Richard Smalley, Robert Curl, James Heath, Sean O'Brien, and Harold Kroto at Rice University. The name was an homage to Buckminster Fuller, whose geodesic domes it resembles.

http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201009103
Happy Birthday, Buckyballs!


The structure of C60, buckminsterfullerene.

Twenty-five years ago this month, researchers first identified buckminsterfullerenes -- chemical structures shaped like tiny carbon soccer balls. The scientists had discovered an new form of carbon, separate from graphite or diamond. The work went on to earn Robert Curl, Richard Smalley, and Harold Kroto the Nobel Prize. We'll talk with Dr. Kroto about the discovery and what's been learned about fullerenes since then.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• C60
• C60 molecule
• Bucky ball
• Buckminster Fuller
• fullerene
• Spherical fullerenes
• buckminsterfullerene
• Richard Smalley
• Robert Curl
• James Heath
• Sean O'Brien
• Harold Kroto
• carbon