Semiconductors Manipulate Light for Drug Molecule Characterization

A photonic effect in semiconducting helical particles, discovered through a collaboration between the University of Bath and the University of Michigan, could facilitate the use of robotic chemistry to speed the development and screening of pharmaceutical drugs. The researchers found that twisted semiconductor nanostructures can convert red light into twisted blue light in tiny volumes, which could aid in the development of chiral drugs. The physical quality of chirality can explain whether a drug molecule twists. Similarly, the measurement of chirality, which is a critical analysis to drug discovery and development, can determine which way the molecule twists. At best, a drug molecule with the wrong twist does nothing; at...