What does fullerene mean?
A fullerene is a molecule made entirely of carbon atoms joined into a hollow, closed cage, usually in the form of a sphere or ellipsoid. The best-known example, containing exactly sixty carbon atoms arranged in twelve pentagons and twenty hexagons, has the same pattern of panels as a football and earned the affectionate nickname 'buckyball' because it echoes the geodesic domes designed by the architect Buckminster Fuller. Discovered in 1985, fullerenes gave chemistry a third familiar form of pure carbon alongside graphite and diamond, and their discovery was recognised with the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The word belongs mainly to scientific discourse — research papers, textbooks, and materials-science journalism — where it signals cutting-edge work on nanomaterials, superconductivity, drug delivery, and electronics. For the general reader, encountering 'fullerene' is a reminder that a single element can assemble itself into strikingly architectural shapes at scales far smaller than any structure humans have built.
nounA fullerene is a hollow molecule of pure carbon arranged in a closed cage, most commonly as a sphere of sixty atoms resembling a football. Fullerenes constitute a distinct allotropic form of carbon, alongside graphite and diamond.
- Any closed-cage molecule composed entirely of carbon atoms, typically spherical (such as C60) or ellipsoidal.
- Specifically, a molecule of C60 (buckminsterfullerene), the archetypal and most abundant fullerene.
"The researchers suspended fullerene molecules in solution to test their ability to trap metal ions."
"Chemists first vaporised graphite with a laser in 1985 and discovered that the carbon had curled itself into spherical fullerenes."
"Because fullerenes can host atoms inside their hollow cages, they are studied for drug delivery and materials science applications."
Standard English plural; used when referring to members of this class of carbon molecules generally rather than to a single molecule.
"The sample contained a mixture of fullerenes of different sizes."
The fullerene got its shape from architect Buckminster Fuller's geodesic domes — making it one of the few molecules named after a building designer.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of fullerene
The name 'fullerene' was coined in the mid-1980s by the chemists who discovered the molecule, honouring Buckminster Fuller, the American architect whose geodesic domes share the molecule's distinctive pattern of interlocking pentagons and hexagons. The '-ene' suffix follows standard chemical naming conventions for unsaturated carbon compounds. Related names in the same family include buckminsterfullerene (the formal name for C60) and fullerite, the term for solid material composed of fullerenes.
Related word forms
How fullerene is actually used
Fullerene is a technical term used chiefly in chemistry, physics, and materials science; in general writing it often appears under its popular nickname 'buckyball'. The family also includes elongated forms such as carbon nanotubes, which are sometimes classified as fullerene-related structures.
Easily confused with fullerene
Fluorene is an aromatic hydrocarbon of coal tar with a similarly spelled but chemically unrelated name, whereas fullerene is a caged allotrope of pure carbon.