Hedgehog Buckyball: High-Symmetry Complete Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxanes (POSSs) Characterized by UV-MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

In this study, we report the first example of a fullerene-like cage, a stable hedgehog buckyball (HBB). The HBB preparation can be performed using a normal hydrolytic condensation which we previously produced based on [(3-methacryloxy) propyl] trimethoxysilane (MPMS). MPMS was also used as a precursor for this study, but a longer condensation time was employed to produce more viscous products with a larger molecular weight (denoted MPOSS or MSSO).A high-symmetry complete POSS formulated as R60Si60O90 or T60 (T=RSiO1.5). The MSSO characterization can be determined by FTIR and GPC and NMR and is assigned from the peaks of UV-MALDI-TOF MS.