Chiral Epitaxy: Enantioselective Growth of Chiral Nanowires on Low-Symmetry Two-Dimensional Materials

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the first vapor-phase enantioselective growth of chiral tellurium nanowires on a low-symmetry 2D material, offering a solvent-free method for producing homochiral crystals for advanced device applications.

Contribution

It introduces chiral epitaxy on 2D materials as a new approach for enantioselective crystal growth, expanding beyond solution-based methods.

Findings

Chiral nanowires grown on ReSe2 with controlled handedness.

Mechanism involves nucleation at the interface energy difference.

Method is compatible with semiconductor manufacturing.

Abstract

Chiral crystals exhibit useful handedness-dependent properties, including spin selectivity and circularly polarized light sensitivity, yet controlling which enantiomer forms during synthesis remains a central challenge. Existing approaches utilize molecules in solution to template crystal growth, which restricts processing conditions and introduces organic contaminants incompatible with device fabrication. Enantioselective growth of a chiral crystal on a chiral surface via vapor-phase synthesis (chiral epitaxy) has not yet been demonstrated. Here, we show chiral epitaxy of aligned tellurium nanowires on a low-symmetry two-dimensional material, ReSe2. In situ electron microscopies suggest a mechanism where handedness is determined at nucleation by the interface energy difference between Te enantiomers and the chiral substrate surface. Chiral epitaxy provides a solvent-free, vapor-solid route to homochiral crystals compatible with semiconductor and quantum manufacturing processes.