Fullerene intercalation compounds

The past two decades have seen considerable research directed towards the synthesis and characterisation of molecular conductors. These systems have been thought of as characteristic 'low dimensional' conductors, due to the one dimensional chains or two dimensional planes formed by the flat organic components in their crystal structures. This low dimensionality makes many of these systems susceptible to electronically driven metal-to-insulator transitions, such as the Peierls or spin density wave. The synthesis of a quasi-spherical, redox active π-system (C60) has resulted in the first class of three dimensional molecular conductors, A3C60. In this short article, we briefly address some recent developments in the physics and chemistry of these systems. (orig.)