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It cannot be found in a jewelry store, but this substance could help make navigation systems more precise. What makes it so valuable?
Gold, diamonds and platinum are famous for their high prices, but another material exists far beyond their usual price range. Nitrogen-based endohedral fullerenes have attracted attention for their reported value of approximately $140 million per gram, according to Indy100.
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Their extraordinary cost comes from the complexity of producing them and their potential scientific applications, rather than their appearance or rarity alone.
What makes this substance so expensive?
Endohedral fullerenes are molecules made from carbon atoms arranged in a hollow, spherical cage. In this particular variety, nitrogen atoms are enclosed inside a structure formed by 60 carbon atoms.
These molecules, sometimes called buckyballs, have properties that make them interesting to researchers developing advanced technologies. Their unusual structure could help scientists create extremely precise devices on a much smaller scale.
In 2015, the company Designer Carbon Materials reportedly sold 200 milligrams of the substance for approximately $168 million, based on the reported price of $110 million at the time. The transaction helped draw attention to its extraordinary value.
Could it change everyday technology?
One of the most promising possibilities is the development of miniature atomic clocks. These devices measure time with exceptional precision, and researchers have explored whether endohedral fullerenes could help shrink the technology enough to fit onto a chip.
Smaller, highly accurate atomic clocks could eventually improve navigation systems, including GPS, which depends on precise timing to determine locations. Potential applications could extend to smartphones, autonomous vehicles and other electronic devices.
However, these possibilities remain dependent on further scientific and engineering advances. Producing the material is difficult, and its potential uses have not yet made it an everyday technology.
As Indy100 highlighted in its coverage, the substance's value is tied to what scientists might achieve with it. The $140 million-per-gram figure is striking, but it also requires context: rankings of the world's most expensive substances vary depending on whether they use reported sales, market prices or theoretical production costs.
For now, endohedral fullerenes remain a specialised research material. Their significance lies not simply in their extraordinary price, but in the possibility that these tiny molecular structures could help shape the next generation of precision technology.