Self-assembly of C60 fullerene molecules in the hexane–xylene solvent system

The behavior of self-assembly of C₆₀ molecules in solutions of C₆₀/hexane/xylene were studied by the methods of refractometry, ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy and dynamic light scattering (DLS). It was experimentally shown that with a slight increase in either the concentration of fullerene C₆₀ or the volume fraction of xylene in a C₆₀/hexane/xylene solution, the refractive index of the medium increases. Increasing the xylene content of the C₆₀/hexane/xylene system leads to significant changes in charge transfer between solute and solvent, which, in particular, exhibit both a positive solvatochromic effect and a hypochromic effect in a strong absorption band at ∼328.8 nm. It was established by the DLS method that with an increase in the concentration of C₆₀ in the C₆₀/hexane solution from 20 to 30 mg/dm³, the maximum radius of the synthesized nanoclusters in solutions changed from ∼6.25 nm to ∼17.2 nm, and also with an increase in the mole fraction of xylene in the C₆₀/hexane/xylene system, the cluster size gradually decreases.