'Superatoms' can be used to make ionic-esque lattices using C60 (black) and metal chalcogenides © Science/AAASCould a new periodic table be on the horizon, populated not by conventional elements but by new ‘superatoms’ designed in the lab? This is the intriguing implication of new work by US chemists, who have made structural analogues of simple ionic compounds such as sodium chloride and cadmium iodide by interacting large molecular clusters instead of individual atoms.The new compounds have unexpected electronic and magnetic properties, opening the prospect for the design of bespoke solid state materials whose properties can be tuned by the...