Surface Brillouin scattering technique has been used to study the elastic p
roperties of superhard amorphous carbon, synthesized from C-60 under high p
ressure (13-13.5 GPa) and temperature (900 +/- 100 degrees C). This is the
first reliable determination of bulk and shear elastic moduli for this type
of amorphous carbon material, to the best of our knowledge. The measured m
oduli are found to be close to those of diamond in agreement with the gener
al trend for elasticity, hardness, and density among the carbon phases, dem
onstrating as well the efficiency of high-pressure fullerene technique for
synthesis of sp(3)-based amorphous carbon materials.