Designing Antiferromagnetic Spin-1/2 Chains in Janus Fullerene Nanoribbons.

Peng, Bo; Pizzochero, Michele · Nano Lett · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

We designed antiferromagnetic spin-1/2 chains in fullerene nanoribbons by introducing extra C<sub>60</sub> cages at one of their edges. The resulting odd number of intermolecular bonds induces an unpaired π-electron and hence a quantized magnetic moment in otherwise nonmagnetic nanoribbons. We further reveal the formation of an antiferromagnetic ground state upon the linear arrangement of spin-1/2 C<sub>60</sub> cages that is insensitive to the specific structural motifs. Janus fullerene nanoribbons may offer an experimentally accessible route to magnetic edge states in low-dimensional carbon nanostructures, possibly serving as a versatile nanoarchitecture for scalable spin-based devices and the exploration of many-body quantum phases.