Many molecules possess shapes that distinguish them from their mirror images, much like a human hand. These handed, or chiral, molecules are of great importance in chemistry, biology, medicine and agriculture owing to their ubiquity and the vital roles that they play in biological function. Indeed, a remarkable and important consequence of the latter lies in the fact that the mirror-image forms, or enantiomers, of a chiral molecule can interact differently with living things. For example, one enantiomer of carvone is found in spearmint leaves whereas the opposite enantiomer is found in caraway seeds, thus being associated with different aromas; one enantiomer of methamphetamine is recognised as being a harmful narcotic whereas the opposite enantiomer is used as a decongestant. Means by which to probe and utilise molecular chirality are thus highly sought after, in both academic and industrial contexts.
One of the principal approaches available to us lies in the use of light that is itself chiral. Specifically, circularly polarised light, in which the electric and magnetic fields twist, like a corkscrew, in either a left- or a right-handed manner. Naturally, a chiral molecule interacts differently with these mirror-image forms of twisting light, much as a given human hand interacts differently with left- and right-handed gloves, and these differences enable us to explore and harness molecular chirality in various ways. More generally, differences in the response exhibited by matter, including chiral molecules, to left- and right-circularly polarised light comprise the subject of optical activity, applications of which are diverse and range from the study of the structures of viruses to the operation of liquid crystal displays. Molecular chirality and optical activity thus pervade science and technology.
Lying at the heart of my proposed Fellowship research is my observation that new types of light in which the electric and magnetic fields twist in unusual ways afford the possibility of improving our understanding of molecular chirality and our ability to utilise it and, more broadly, of significantly advancing the subject of optical activity and its applications. Following this observation, I will pioneer entirely new manifestations of optical activity in the translational degrees of freedom of molecules and atoms and in the rotational degrees of freedom of molecules, enable 'dormant' manifestations of optical activity in light scattering to be exploited, for the first time, and expand upon the understanding and applications of well-established manifestations of optical activity, including circular dichroism and optical rotation. New experimental techniques and technologies based upon my research could be employed to probe the laws of physics themselves in unprecedented ways; to measure enigmatic properties of light; to gain deeper understandings of the structures of molecules and atoms, their behaviour in chemical processes and their roles in biological function; to assist in the design and manufacture of new materials, cosmetics, foods, drugs and agrochemicals and much more besides.
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