  We have investigated the electronic properties of a C_60 molecule in between
carbon nanotube leads. This problem has been tackled within a quantum chemical
treatment utilizing a density functional theory-based LCAO approach combined
with the Landauer formalism. Owing to low-dimensionality, electron transport is
very sensitive to the strength and geometry of interfacial bonds. Molecular
contact between interfacial atoms and electrodes gives rise to a complex
conductance dependence on the electron energy exhibiting spectral features of
both the molecule and electrodes. These are attributed to the electronic
structure of the C_60 molecule and to the local density of states of the leads,
respectively.
