A new type of metal-free ferromagnetic carbon material was obtained by thermal polymerization and electron beam irradiation of diphenyloctatetrayne (DPOT). The isothermal magnetic measurements showed hysteresis loops indicating weak but intrinsic ferromagnetism with Curie temperatures of around 600 K. Electron spin resonance spectroscopy showed that the material contained stable free radicals in the range of 10(17)-10(20) radicals g(-1) depending on the polymerization process. The ferromagnetism should be due to high radical concentration although no correlation was observed between them. It was shown that an amorphous ferromagnetic carbon could be obtained from a simple crystalline solid by heating at moderate temperatures. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.