Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 19, 2025

An Electrochemical Cholesteric Liquid Crystalline Device for Quick and Low-Voltage Color Modulation
Published on: February 27, 2019
Circularly Polarized Photodetectors Based on Chiral Materials: A Review
Can Zhang1, Xiaohong Wang1,2, Longzhen Qiu1,2,3
1National Engineering Lab of Special Display Technology, State Key Lab of Advanced Display Technology, Academy of Opto-Electronic Technology, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, China.
Abstract:
Circularly polarized light (CPL) plays an important role in many photonic techniques, including tomographic scanning based on circular polarization ellipsometry, optical communication and information of spin, and quantum-based optical calculation and information processing. To fully exploit the functions of CPL in these fields, integrated photoelectric sensors capable of detecting CPL are essential. Photodetectors based on chiral materials can directly detect CPL due to their intrinsic optical activity, without the need to be coupled with polarizers and quarter-wave plates as in conventional photodetectors. This review summarizes the recent research progress in CPL photodetectors based on chiral materials. We first briefly introduce the CPL photodetectors based on different types of chiral materials and their working principles. Finally, current challenges and future opportunities in the development of CPL photodetectors are prospected.
Related Concept Videos
Chirality in Nature
Chirality
Chiral objects exhibit a sense of handedness when they interact with another chiral object. For example, our left foot can only fit in the left shoe and not in the right shoe. Achiral objects — objects that have...
Properties of Enantiomers and Optical Activity
Prochirality
Molecules with Multiple Chiral Centers
Chirality at Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur
A consequence of chirality is the need for enantiomeric resolution. While this is theoretically possible for all...

