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How many carbon atoms are in a C60 buckyball?

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The powers of 10 — nanotechnology Examples from biological and mechanical realms illustrate various “orders of magnitude” (powers of 10), from 10⁻² meter down to 10⁻⁷ meter.

A C60 buckyball, also known as buckminsterfullerene, is composed of exactly 60 carbon atoms.12

These atoms are joined together by single and double bonds to form a highly symmetrical, hollow, spherical cage. The structure consists of 32 faces—12 pentagons and 20 hexagons—which gives the molecule a geometry similar to that of a soccer ball. This discovery, made in 1985, helped launch the field of nanotechnology by introducing a new form of carbon distinct from diamond and graphite.132