METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PRODUCING ENDOHEDRAL FULLERENE IN MELT

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and a system for producing an endohedral fullerene in a high yield.;SOLUTION: An open-cage fullerene 12 having a thirteen-membered ring opening is formed by a method described in the nonpatent literature 3. Oxygen atoms having a positive electron affinity are attached to the opening. The open-cage fullerene 12 and sodium 13 in a solid state are placed in a container, the atmosphere in the container is purged with an inert gas, and the contents are heated to melt the sodium. Then, the sodium atom, which has negative electron affinity, is electrically bound to the opening of the open-cage fullerene. By leaving the melt 14 to stand for a while under pressure, the sodium atom is pushed into the inside of the open-cage fullerene to form a sodium-atom-occluding fullerene. The sodium atoms remaining not occluded in the open-cage fullerene are safely removed, and the chemically modifying group is released by irradiation with ultraviolet rays. Then, the sodium-occluding fullerene is allowed to self-restore into a sodium-atom-containing endohedral fullerene whose cage is composed of six-membered rings and five-membered rings.;COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI