Size of spin polarization in photoinduced electron transfer across chiral bridges
In plain words
Light can make an electron jump from one part of a molecule to another through a chiral connecting piece. Magnetic resonance measurements can then read the spins of the two resulting charged fragments, which gives a clean test of the effect inside a single molecule.
Precise statement
For donor-chiral bridge-acceptor molecules in frozen solution, compute the spin polarization of the photogenerated radical pair arising from electron transfer through the chiral bridge, from the molecular Hamiltonian including spin-orbit coupling and electron-vibration coupling, and compare with the measured time-resolved EPR spectra. The answer is the polarization magnitude and its dependence on bridge length and handedness.
What would settle it
Quantum dynamics of spin-dependent electron transfer with ab initio parameters reproducing the measured EPR signatures.
Status in the literature
In 2023 time-resolved EPR (Eckvahl et al., Science, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adj5328) detected spin polarization from electron transfer through a chiral bridge; a parameter-free calculation of its size is lacking.