Artificial molecules that switch "handedness" at light-speed
Baku, July 12 (AZERTAC). A multi-institutional team of researchers including scientists with Los Alamos National Laboratory (of the U.S. Department of Energy`s National Nuclear Security Administration) has created the first artificial molecules whose chirality can be rapidly switched from a right-handed to a left-handed orientation with a beam of light on them. Switchable molecules hold potentially huge possibilities for the application of terahertz technologies across a wide range of fields, including biomedical research, homeland security and ultrahigh-speed communications.
Chirality is the distinct left/right orientation or “handedness” of some types of molecules, meaning the molecule can take one of two mirror image forms. The right-handed and left-handed forms of such molecules, called “enantiomers,” can exhibit strikingly different properties. For example, one enantiomer of the chiral molecule limonene smells of lemon, the other smells of orange. The ability to observe or even switch the chirality of molecules using terahertz (trillion-cycles-per-second) electromagnetic radiation is a much-coveted asset in the world of high technology.
"Natural materials can be induced to change their chirality but the process, which involves structural changes to the material, is weak and slow. With our artificial molecules, we`ve demonstrated strong dynamic chirality switching at light-speed,” says Xiang Zhang, one of the leaders of this research and a principal investigator with Berkeley Lab`s Materials Sciences Division.
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