Buckminsterfullerene (C60) is the smallest fullerene molecule that resembles a soccer ball, with carbon atoms at the corners of hexagons and bonds along the edges. It is about 1 nanometer in diameter and is the most common fullerene found in soot. C60 has potential medical and industrial applications. Carbon nanotubes are incredibly strong and flexible cylindrical molecules that could be used in nanotechnology. An egg-shaped fullerene molecule has also been discovered that contains a molecule of triterbium nitride inside.

1. Bucky Ball
 Buckminsterfullerene (IUPAC name (C60-
Ih)[5,6]fullerene) is the smallest fullerene in
which no two pentagons share an edge. It is
also the most common in terms of natural
occurrence, as it can often be found in soot.
 The structure of C60 is a truncated T=3
icosahedron, which resembles a soccer ball
of the type made of hexagons and
pentagons, with a carbon atom at the
corners of each hexagon and a bond along
each edge.
 The diameter of a C60 molecule is about 1
nanometer (nm).
 From AIDS medicines to superconductors to
flat-screen TVs, a wide range of medical
and industrial uses are envisioned for the
buckminsterfullerene, an incredibly strong
soccer-ball-shaped molecule that is the third
form of carbon after diamond and graphite.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckyball
•http://www.godunov.com/Bucky/fullerene.htm
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2. Bucky Tube
 The strength and flexibility of carbon
nanotubes makes them of potential
use in controlling other nanoscale
structures, which suggests they will
have an important role in
nanotechnology engineering.
 The highest tensile strength an
individual multi-walled carbon
nanotube has been tested to be is
63 GPa.
 Carbon nanotubes have already been
used as composite fibers in polymers
to improve the mechanical, thermal
and electrical properties of the bulk
product.
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_nanotube

3. Bucky Egg
 An egg-shaped fullerene, or
"buckyball egg" has been made and
characterized by chemists at UC
Davis, Virginia Tech and Emory and
Henry College, Va. The unexpected
discovery opens new possibilities for
structures for fullerenes, which
could have a wide range of uses.
 Beavers started to map out the
structure, she found two pentagons
next to each other, making the
pointy end of the egg. Initially she
thought that the results were a
mistake, but she showed the data to
Marilyn Olmstead, an expert on X-ray
crystallography, and they
decided that the results were real.
The egg contains a molecule of
triterbium nitride inside.
•http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news