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Natural C60 and Large Fullerenes: A Matter of Detection and Astrophysical Implications

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Natural Fullerenes and Related Structures of Elemental Carbon

Part of the book series: Developments in Fullerene Science ((DFUL,volume 6))

Abstract

Fullerene was theoretically predicted and experimentally discovered, but its detection in laboratory studies is still underrepresented with respect to its theoretical abundance. Recent High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM) studies of soot samples, however, lead to single fullerene molecule detection in higher amounts than was previously established. HRTEM is able to identify fullerenes even if they are only present in small quantities that would be below the detection limit of chemical techniques. Fullerenes will probably remain largely undetected until higher signal to noise ratio measurements are used to search for them. Such studies could yield different conclusions on fullerene abundances both in terrestrial and in extraterrestrial samples. For the latter, important astrophysical implications have to be considered.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Scienze e Applicazioni, Università “Parthenope” di Napoli, Via A. De Gasperi 5, 80133, Napoli, Italy

    Alessandra Rotundi

  2. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, 1-University of New Mexico, MSC03-2040, Albuquerque, NM, 87131-0001, USA

    Frans J. M. Rietmeijer

  3. Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale, Bâtiment 121, Campus 91405, Orsay Cedex, France

    Janet Borg

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Rotundi, A., Rietmeijer, F.J.M., Borg, J. (2006). Natural C60 and Large Fullerenes: A Matter of Detection and Astrophysical Implications. In: Natural Fullerenes and Related Structures of Elemental Carbon. Developments in Fullerene Science, vol 6. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4135-7_5

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