Spin selective charge recombination in chiral donor-bridge-acceptor triads

Area of Science:

• Physical Chemistry
• Quantum Mechanics
• Molecular Physics

Background:

• Chiral systems exhibit unique spin-dependent behaviors.
• Electron transfer processes are fundamental in molecular systems.
• Spin-orbit coupling plays a crucial role in spin dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a physically motivated framework for spin-selective recombination in chiral systems.
• To derive spin-selective reaction operators for donor-bridge-acceptor molecules.
• To investigate the role of chirality and spin-orbit coupling in electron transfer.

Main Methods:

• Derivation of spin-selective reaction operators.
• Analysis of spin-coherence and spin-polarization selectivity.
• Modeling of electron transfer mediated by chirality and spin-orbit coupling.

Main Results:

• Recombination is generally selective for spin-coherence, not spin polarization.
• Spin polarization selectivity arises in hopping-mediated electron transfer due to transient intermediate states.
• Coherent spin dynamics significantly affect recombination and reduce long-lived spin polarization.

Conclusions:

• The developed framework can describe spin-selective recombination in various chiral systems.
• Understanding spin dynamics is crucial for controlling recombination processes.
• The findings have implications for molecular electronics and spintronics.