Chirality-induced spin selectivity by variable-range hopping along DNA double helix

TL;DR

This paper introduces a variable-range hopping model for DNA that explains how its chiral structure induces spin selectivity through phonon-assisted electron transport, matching experimental temperature-dependent polarization data.

Contribution

The study presents a novel theoretical model linking DNA's chirality to spin selectivity via phonon-assisted hopping, providing quantitative explanations for experimental observations.

Findings

Model explains temperature dependence of spin polarization.

Chirality induces electric toroidal monopole in conductance.

Quantitative agreement with experimental data.

Abstract

We here present a variable-range hopping model to describe the chirality-induced spin selectivity along the DNA double helix. In this model, DNA is considered as a one-dimensional disordered system, where electrons are transported by chiral phonon-assisted hopping between localized states. Owing to the coupling between the electron spin and the vorticity of chiral phonons, electric toroidal monopole appears in the charge-to-spin conductances as a manifestation of true chirality. Our model quantitatively explains the temperature dependence of the spin polarization observed in experiments.