Term: glass-like carbon
https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.G02639

Definition:
An agranular non-graphitizable carbon with a very high isotropy of its structural and physical properties and with a very low permeability for liquids and gases. The original surfaces and the fracture surfaces have a pseudo-glassy appearance.

Note: The often used synonyms 'glassy carbon' and 'vitreous carbon' have been introduced as trademarks and should not be used as terms. From a scientific viewpoint, all synonymous terms suggest a similiarity with the structure of silicate glasses which does not exist in glass-like carbon, except for the pseudo-glassy appearance of the surface. Glass-like carbon cannot be described as @A00294@ because it consists of two-dimensional structural elements and does not exhibit 'dangling' bonds.

Related Terms:
1) amorphous carbon (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.A00294).
2) non-graphitizable carbon (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.N04194).
3) permeability (http://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.P04503).

Source: PAC, 1995, 67, 473. 'Recommended terminology for the description of carbon as a solid (IUPAC Recommendations 1995)' on page 490 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac199567030473)

Citation: 'glass-like carbon' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.G02639

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