Symmetric nested complexes of fullerenes.

Large fullerenes such as C180 and C116 can be used as hosts for other molecules of the same family. Based on this idea, two complexes were designed, one in which C180 accepts a C60 molecule as a guest and the other in which C20 was placed inside C116. The behavior of these new assemblies was closer to that of a large endohedral complex rather than onion-like. There were marked differences between the systems. In the first system, there was minor interaction between the two cages but the association resulted in a more stable thermodynamic state. In the second system, there was strong electronic interchange between the cages, and the thermodynamic results suggest that such a combination might be useful for forming stable C20.