RESUMEN
The hypothesis that fullerenes grow in a carbon plasma by the addition of C2 units (the "fullerene road") has been widely acclaimed as the most plausible mechanism for formation of larger fullerenes including C60 and C70. Calculations suggest that the association of C2 with fullerenes proceeds through two classes of intermediates, "sticks" and "handles." Here we report the observation of these species using high-resolution ion-mobility measurements for C(n) cations generated by laser vaporization of graphite and laser desorption of C60. Sticks with up to eight-atom chains have also been found.
RESUMEN
The fact that the melting points of nanoparticles are always lower than those of the corresponding bulk material is a paradigm supported by extensive experimental data for a large number of systems and by numerous calculations. Here we demonstrate that tin cluster ions with 10-30 atoms remain solid at approximately 50 K above the melting point of bulk tin. This behavior is possibly related to the fact that the structure of the clusters is completely different from that of the bulk element.
