Controllable Synthesis of Sc3N@C78 Microspindles with Excellent Electrophotonic Properties

Abstract

Single-crystalline structures of fullerenes have attracted tremendous interest due to their promising physiochemical properties. However, research on the morphology and performance of endohedral metallofullerenes is still rare, due to the limited amount of samples. Herein, Sc3N@C78 microspindles are obtained for the first time by regulating the volume ratio of toluene to isopropyl alcohol (IPA) and the concentration of Sc3N@C78 solution as well. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) studies indicate that the crystalline structure of Sc3N@C78 microspindles belongs to the hexagonal system. UV–vis–NIR spectroscopy reveals that absorption of Sc3N@C78 microspindles is stronger than that of the Sc3N@C78 solution in the ultraviolet and visible regions, suggesting strong intermolecular π–π interactions. In addition, Sc3N@C78 microspindles exhibit excellent photoconductivity, as evidenced by the photoelectrochemical measurements. Our results provide new insight into the exploration of novel structures of metallofullerenes for optoelectronic applications.