Chiral phenomenon previously thought impossible discovered in metal sulfide crystal

Researchers in Germany and the UK have discovered a material that can flip its chirality when put under physical stress. The researchers hope the phenomenon, which they have dubbed the piezochiral effect, could enable rational control over the enantioselectivity of catalysts.¹

Chirality is crucial to numerous areas of chemistry, such as biochemistry and pharmacology, and its control is therefore important in determining the efficiency of chemical syntheses. David MacMillan at Princeton University, US, and Benjamin List at the Max Planck Institute for Coal Research in Germany shared the 2021 Nobel prize in chemistry for their work on asymmetric catalysis, catalysts that preferentially lead to the formation of one isomer of a product and, therefore, reduce waste.