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Controlled Enantioselective Orientation of Chiral Molecules with an Optical Centrifuge

Alexander A. Milner, Jordan A. M. Fordyce, Ian MacPhail-Bartley, Walter Wasserman, Valery Milner, Ilia Tutunnikov, and Ilya Sh. Averbukh
Phys. Rev. Lett. 122, 223201 – Published 3 June 2019

Abstract

We report on the first experimental demonstration of enantioselective rotational control of chiral molecules with a laser field. In our experiments, two enantiomers of propylene oxide are brought to accelerated unidirectional rotation by means of an optical centrifuge. Using Coulomb explosion imaging, we show that the centrifuged molecules acquire preferential orientation perpendicular to the plane of rotation, and that the direction of this orientation depends on the relative handedness of the enantiomer and the rotating centrifuge field. The observed effect is in agreement with theoretical predictions and is reproduced in numerical simulations of the centrifuge excitation followed by Coulomb explosion of the centrifuged molecules. The demonstrated technique opens new avenues in optical enantioselective control of chiral molecules with a plethora of potential applications in differentiation, separation, and purification of chiral mixtures.

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  • Received 29 March 2019

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.122.223201

© 2019 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

  1. Research Areas
  1. Physical Systems
Atomic, Molecular & Optical

Authors & Affiliations

Alexander A. Milner, Jordan A. M. Fordyce, Ian MacPhail-Bartley, Walter Wasserman, and Valery Milner*

  • Department of Physics & Astronomy, The University of British Columbia, V6T-1Z1 Vancouver, Canada

Ilia Tutunnikov and Ilya Sh. Averbukh

  • AMOS and Department of Chemical and Biological Physics, The Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot, Israel

  • *vmilner@phas.ubc.ca
  • ilya.averbukh@weizmann.ac.il

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Issue

Vol. 122, Iss. 22 — 7 June 2019

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