Features of self-aggregation of C60 molecules in toluene prepared by different methods

Abstract

Structural and dimensional features of C60 aggregates in toluene solution prepared in two different ways – equilibrium and strongly non-equilibrium – were studied by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and atomic-force microscopy methods. It was found that in solutions prepared by the non-equilibrium method (stirring of solution of C60 by a mechanical rotator), large quasispherical aggregates (with a diameter of up to ∼380±20 nm) of nanoporous structure with fractal size D≈2.13 were synthesized. In the case of solutions C60, which were prepared by the equilibrium method (without the use of external mechanical influences on solution), the formation of densely packed monomolecular fullerene aggregates with a diameter of not more than 50 nm was observed.