Separating and trapping of chiral nanoparticles with dielectric photonic crystal slabs

Chiral separation is a crucial step in many chemical synthesis processes, particularly for pharmaceuticals. Here we present a novel method for the realization of both separating and trapping of enantiomers using the dielectric photonic crystal (PhC) slabs, which possess quasi-fourfold degenerate Bloch modes (overlapping double degenerate transverse-electric-like and transverse-magnetic-like modes). Based on the designed structure, a large gradient of optical chirality appears near the PhC slab, leading to the extreme enhancement of chiral optical forces about 3 orders of magnitude larger than those obtained with circularly polarized lights. In this case, our method provides a reference for realizing all-optical enantiopure syntheses. (C) 2021 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement

Automated summary

Chiral separation is a crucial step in chemical synthesis processes, and a novel method using dielectric photonic crystal slabs has been proposed to achieve separation and trapping of enantiomers. The method shows extreme enhancement of chiral optical forces compared to circularly polarized lights, providing a reference for realizing all-optical enantiopure syntheses.