Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 10, 2026

The Generation of Higher-order Laguerre-Gauss Optical Beams for High-precision Interferometry
Published on: August 12, 2013
Experimental evidence for the photoisomerization of higher fullerenes
Clemens Burda1, Anna C S Samia, David J Hathcock
1Department of Chemistry, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, USA. burda@po.cwru.edu
Abstract:
The initial relaxation dynamics of the photoexcited fullerenes C60, C70, C76, C84, C86, and C90 were investigated by dispersion-free femtosecond pump-probe spectroscopy. Under identical excitation conditions, the formation of the lowest excited state slows down for the larger fullerenes. This trend in dynamics, monitored throughout the visible and NIR range, is found to correlate with the number of isomers in accordance with the isomerization mechanism suggested by Stone and Wales. The Stone-Wales isomerization was calculated as thermally inaccessible but photoinduced barrierless. The energy difference of the isomers is in the 1 meV range, and back-isomerization is observed on the picosecond time scale. The characteristic spectrally broad transient absorption of the investigated fullerenes is promising for fast optical gating applications.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Law of Independent Assortment
Law of Independent Assortment
Principle of Equivalence
Poisson's Ratio
Relation between Poisson's ratio, Modulus of Elasticity and Modulus of Rigidity
Ostwald’s Dilution Law

