STRUCTURAL INFORMATION ON Y-IONS IN C82 FROM EXAFS EXPERIMENTS

EXAFS experiments on a fullerene sample containing both YC82 and Y2C82 are reported, performed both at 10 K and at room temperature, to prob e the structural environment of the yttrium atoms. The results are sim ilar at both temperatures. The data can be fit with a model with two s hells of 6 carbon atoms each, at 2.4 and 2.9 angstrom, respectively. T his result supports the hypothesis that the metal atoms are trapped in side the fullerene cage, consistent with recent calculations on possib le metallofullerene structures.