Zero to zero nanoarchitectonics with fullerene: from molecules to nanoparticles

Nanoarchitectonics was proposed as a post-nanotechnology concept. The aim is to apply the knowledge gained from nanotechnology to material science, and to architect functional material systems using nano-units (atoms, molecules, nanomaterials, etc.) as building blocks. The methods of nanoarchitectonics can be applied to construct groups of functional materials with various shapes, dimensionalities, and hierarchical properties. In considering the various possibilities of nanoarchitectonics, it is important to appreciate how diverse functions can be created from simple units. For example, it is intriguing to note how fullerenes, as zero-dimensional, single-element molecular units, can build into functional material systems through nanoarchitectonics. In this review, we exemplify the concept of zero to zero nanoarchitectonics using zero-dimensional fullerenes as the building blocks and zero-dimensional nanoparticles as the products. As a related field, we present examples of the functionality of nanoparticles in general as seen in recent studies, as well as some recent studies on fullerene assemblies, in addition to fullerene nanoparticles. Then, we highlight some examples of the functionality of nanoparticles made from fullerenes. Fullerene nanoparticles are actively being used in various fields including organic solar cells, thermoelectric materials, antioxidants, and biomedical materials. Creating nanoparticles from fullerenes is a basic concept in the scheme of nanoarchitectonics, with very diverse fields of contribution. Graphical abstract