The
detection of enantiopurity for small sample quantities is crucial,
particularly in the pharmaceutical industry; however, existing methodologies
rely on specific chiral recognition elements, or complex optical systems,
limiting its utility. A nanoscale chirality sensor, for continuously
monitoring molecular chirality using an electric circuit readout,
is presented. This device design represents an alternative real-time
scalable approach for chiral recognition of small quantity samples
(less than 103 adsorbed molecules). The active device component
relies on a gold nanofloret hybrid structure, i.e., a high aspect
ratio semiconductor–metal hybrid nanosystem in which a SiGe
nanowire tip is selectively decorated with a gold metallic cap. The
tip mechanically touches a counter electrode to generate a nanojunction,
and upon exposure to molecules, a metal–molecule–metal
junction is formed. Adsorption of chiral molecules at the gold tip
induces chirality in the localized plasmonic resonance at the electrode–tip
junction and manifests in an enantiospecific current response.
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