Chirality-induced spin selectivity (CISS) refers to multiple phenomena where the

chirality Chirality () is a property of asymmetry important in several branches of science. The word ''chirality'' is derived from the Greek (''kheir''), "hand", a familiar chiral object. An object or a system is ''chiral'' if it is distinguishable fro ...

of a chemical compound influences the

spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

of transmitted or emitted

electron The electron (, or in nuclear reactions) is a subatomic particle with a negative one elementary charge, elementary electric charge. It is a fundamental particle that comprises the ordinary matter that makes up the universe, along with up qua ...

s. This effect was discovered by Ron Naaman and co-workers. Experiments were able to demonstrate the effect in the form of polarization of electrons scattered from chiral molecules, spin-dependent transmission probabilities through layers of chiral molecules, spin-selectivity of electron-transport in a chiral medium and enantio-selectivity in chemical reactions induced by spin-polarized electrons. Theoretical models were able to qualitatively explain the effect using spin-orbit coupling (SOC). But quantitatively, the predicted effect was always orders of magnitude smaller than what was measured in experiments. Whilst mechanism underlying CISS is not completely understood, a hybrid method comprising a film of pure gold with chiral molecules on it has produced results on par with the magnetic method.

References

{{AMO-physics-stub Stereochemistry