Creating a chiral polymer from achiral monomers using a magnetic field

Bob Yirka is a research scientist at Phys.org.

A group of researchers from the Weizmann Institute and the Israel Institute of Technology have developed a way to align the spin of the electrons that are involved in bond formation using a magnetic field. The group describes their technique in a paper published in Science Advances.

One of the most well-known chemical processes is the creation ofpharmaceuticals. They are mirrors of other molecule that allow for strong bonding. Two hands are pressed against each other. It takes a long time to create such molecule. The researchers have come up with a way to simplify the process in one type of application by using monomers.

The team was able to control the magnetic field on the surface of the electrode with the addition of additional monomers by placing a molecule on it. Doing so allowed for the spin-polarized electrons to be controlled as they were absorbed into the molecule and that allowed for the shape of the molecule to be changed as it grew. A desired shape was achieved.

The researchers note that they were able to maintain thehandedness of each new stereocenter throughout the process, though they acknowledge that such control grew weaker as the polymer chains grew in length. They were able to control the action up to 100 NM.

The researchers note that using the new technique could allow for the production of chiral polymers without the need for catalysts or reagents, which are typically discarded after the reactions are complete. They think it could help explain why living creatures are almost all single en antiomers.

More information: Deb Kumar Bhowmick et al, Spin-induced asymmetry reaction—The formation of asymmetric carbon by electropolymerization, Science Advances (2022). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abq2727 Journal information: Science Advances

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