Simple annealing process for producing unique one-dimensional fullerene crystal named fullerene finned-micropillar.

We propose a process for easily fabricating a unique one-dimensional fullerene crystal, i.e., a fullerene finned-micropillar (FFMP). To fabricate a one-dimensional fullerene crystal more easily than when using current processes, fullerene was first annealed at 1173 K for 1 h with an argon gas flow of 0.5 L/min. We then examined how the FFMP structure changed when the fabrication process conditions, such as temperature, annealing time, and argon gas flow rate, were varied. FFMPs can be prepared within a short time and may have the same electrical characteristics as other one-dimensional crystals, e.g., fullerene nanowhiskers, so they are expected to be very useful for field-effect transistors, organic photovoltaics, and so on in the near future.