Reconfigurable Plasmonic Chirality: Fundamentals and Applications

TL;DR

This paper reviews methods to dynamically reconfigure the optical chirality of plasmonic nanostructures, enabling adaptable chiroptical responses for advanced applications in sensing, polarization control, and catalysis.

Contribution

It outlines various strategies for reconfiguring plasmonic chirality postfabrication, highlighting their potential for practical optical device applications.

Findings

Reconfigurable plasmonic structures can alter their chiroptical responses.

Strategies include changing structural conformation or optical signatures.

Potential applications include sensing and polarization devices.

Abstract

Molecular chirality is a geometric property that is of great importance in chemistry, biology, and medicine. Recently, plasmonic nanostructures that exhibit distinct chiroptical responses have attracted tremendous interest, given their ability to emulate the properties of chiral molecules with tailored and pronounced optical characteristics. However, the optical chirality of such human-made structures is in general static and cannot be manipulated postfabrication. Herein, different concepts to reconfigure the chiroptical responses of plasmonic nano- and micro-objects are outlined. Depending on the utilized strategies and stimuli, the chiroptical signature, the 3D structural conformation, or both can be reconfigured. Optical devices based on plasmonic nanostructures with reconfigurable chirality possess great potential in practical applications, ranging from polarization conversion elements to enantioselective analysis, chiral sensing, and catalysis.