Resumen de Design of a C60 Structural Model Based on Transistors Linked With Plastic Tubes

Ryo Horikoshi, Dai Shirotani, Hiroshi Shioyama

• Buckminsterfullerene (C60), along with diamond and graphite, appears in many chemistry textbooks as an example of an allotrope of carbon. This communication describes a hands-on activity to explore the characteristic structure of C60 through the construction of a structural model using transistors and plastic tubes (heat-shrink and silicone). Transistors resemble sp2 carbons when their three electrodes are spread 120° in relation to each other. The heat-shrink tube is suitable for connecting thin electrodes of transistors. By connecting 60 transistors using 90 precut plastic tubes, a C60 model can be built that costs about 2.1 USD. This activity was carried out with nonchemistry majors using a remote lecture system. The participants enjoyed constructing their C60 models and were challenged to estimate the diameter of an actual C60 molecule using the models that they had built.