Field-induced diastereomers for chiral separation

Abstract

A novel approach for the state-specific enantiomeric enrichment and the spatial separation of enantiomers is presented. Our scheme utilizes techniques from strong-field laser physics, specifically an optical centrifuge in conjunction with a static electric field, to create a chiral field with defined handedness. Molecular enantiomers experience unique rotational excitation dynamics and this can be exploited to spatially separate the enantiomers using electrostatic deflection. Notably, the rotational-state-specific enantiomeric enhancement and its handedness is fully controllable. To explain these effects, we introduce the conceptual framework of $field\text{-}induced~diastereomers$ of a chiral molecule and perform robust quantum mechanical simulations on the prototypical chiral molecule propylene oxide (C$_3$H$_6$O), for which ensembles with an enantiomeric excess of up to $30~\%$ were obtained.