Helical polymers for dissymmetric circularly polarized light imaging

Control of the spin angular momentum (SAM) carried in a photon provides a technologically attractive element for next-generation quantum networks and spintronics(1-5). However, the weak optical activity and inhomogeneity of thin films from chiral molecular crystals result in high noise and uncertainty in SAM detection. Brittleness of thin molecular crystals represents a further problem for device integration and practical realization of chiroptical quantum devices(6-10). Despite considerable successes with highly dissymmetric optical materials based on chiral nanostructures(11-13), the problem of integration of nanochiral materials with optical device platforms remains acute(14-16). Here we report a simple yet powerful method to fabricate chiroptical flexible layers via supramolecular helical ordering of conjugated polymer chains. Their multiscale chirality and optical activity can be varied across the broad spectral range by chiral templating with volatile enantiomers. After template removal, chromophores remain stacked in one-dimensional helical nanofibrils producing a homogeneous chiroptical layer with drastically enhanced polarization-dependent absorbance, leading to well-resolved detection and visualization of SAM. This study provides a direct path to scalable realization of on-chip detection of the spin degree of freedom of photons necessary for encoded quantum information processing and high-resolution polarization imaging.

Automated summary

In this study, a simple and powerful method was used to fabricate chiroptical flexible layers through supramolecular helical ordering of conjugated polymer chains. The multiscale chirality and optical activity of these layers can be varied across a broad spectral range by chiral templating. After template removal, chromophores remain in one-dimensional helical nanofibrils, producing a homogeneous chiroptical layer with drastically enhanced polarization-dependent absorbance, enabling well-resolved detection and visualization of the spin angular momentum (SAM) of photons. This study provides a scalable path towards on-chip detection of the spin degree of freedom of photons necessary for encoded quantum information processing and high-resolution polarization imaging.