Circular dichroism of relativistically–moving chiral molecules

Abstract

Abstract Understanding the impact of the relativistic motion of a chiral molecule on its optical response is a prime challenge for fundamental science, but it also has a direct practical relevance in our search for extraterrestrial life. To contribute to these significant developments, we describe a multi–scale computational framework that combines quantum chemistry calculations and full–wave optical simulations to predict the chiral optical response from molecules moving at relativistic speeds. Specifically, the effect of a relativistic motion on the transmission circular dichroism (TCD) of three life–essential biomolecules, namely, B–DNA, chlorophyll a, and chlorophyll b, is investigated. Inspired by previous experiments to detect interstellar chiral molecules, we assume that the molecules move between a stationary observer and a light source, and we study the rotationally averaged TCD as a function of the speed of the molecule.We find that the TCD spectrum that contains the signatures of the molecules shifts with increasing speed to shorter wavelengths, with the effects already being visible for moderate velocities.

Keywords

• Chiral molecules
• Relativistic motion
• Circular dichroism
• Multi–scale modelling
• Quantum chemistry