Carbon materials with nano-scale periodicity such as
graphene and carbon nanotubes, called “nanocarbons,” are expected
to become light, highly functional next-generation materials. There
have been demands for precise synthesis methods targeting only at
the nanocarbon structure with the desired property because their
electronic and mechanical properties are greatly different
depending on the structure. Under such circumstances, “molecular
nanocarbon science,” in which organic synthesis is used to
precisely synthesize molecules with partial structures of
nanocarbons, has recently received attention and thus a lot of
research projects are under way all over the world.
