Doped C₆₀ Structures

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	C₆₀ molecules form a face-centered-cubic (fcc) solid. In this virtual reality world the buckyballs are represented by spheres, and the size of the spheres approximately corresponds the size of the C₆₀ molecules. In this structure there is plenty of empty space between the fullerene molecules. A little exploration reveals that, for each C₆₀, there are three available sites where other atoms could go. One of these sites is called the "octahedral site", and the other two are the "tetrahedral" sites.
	When the octahedral sites are filled with alkali ions the A₁C₆₀ is obtained. ("A" stands for potassium, rubidium or cesium.) In this picture the blue spheres indicate the alkali metals. Is there an alkali atom in the center of the cube? Go there and find out. Interestingly, when this material is cooled below room temperature, the structure changes, as the buckyballs bind into long polymer chains, as illustrated in the title picture of the buckyball page. These chains form along the face diagonals of the cube, as seen here. Walk around and search for more empty space between the bucky balls. Those are the "tetrahedral" sites, where more alkali metal could go.
	When the tetrahedral sites are also filled (light blue color), the superconducting A₃C₆₀ is produced.

Not finished yet! See the next page about the structure of the fullerides.

Doped C60 Structures