Donor–acceptor interaction and fullerene C60 dimerization

The current Letter considers the fullerene dimerization as a particular reaction obeyed to intermolecular interaction between monomer molecules complicated by donor–acceptor one. The reaction features are connected with a two-well structure of the ground state energy term. Analyzing characteristics of the term, proven by quantum-chemical calculations of the C60 + C60 binary systems at different starting intermolecular distances, mechanisms of both physically (photoexcitation, thermal, high pressure, plasma, electron beam, and electric field) and chemically (alkali fullerites AC60) stimulated dimerization are suggested.