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It is shown that a strong Coulomb and exchange interactions between π electrons in
a fullerene molecule lead to the localization of these electrons, quantization of their energies,
and a highly correlated state manifesting itself in the formation of electron crystals. In this
approximation the fullerene molecule is a nanosize quantum system consisting of a positively
charged rolled-up carbon backbone surrounded by three electron crystals: (i) two crystals
formed by π electrons in the 2 pz state that participate in the π bond formation through the
resonance of structures and are located on the convex and concave sides of the molecule, and
(ii) the crystal formed by pairs of π* electrons excited into the 2pz 3s state and participating in
the formation of nonresonant π* bonds. The chemical activity and physical properties of such
a system are determined by the crystal formed by electron pairs.
Keywords: fullerenes, highly correlated electron state, electron crystals, nanosize quantum system |
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