Rectification of Vibrational Energy Transfer in Driven Chiral Molecules
Chemical Physics
2025-10-31 v2 Other Condensed Matter
Abstract
We show that the combination of molecular chirality and phase-controlled driving can lead to rectification of vibrational energy transfer. We demonstrate this effect using classical models of (1) a single helical chain and (2) a more realistic model of polyethylene double helix. We examine the effect of the driving frequency, polarization, and temperature on this phenomenon. Notably, we find that the direction and magnitude of the observed directionality preference depend on the driving frequency and phase, and that the effect persists at room temperature.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2509.00324,
title = {Rectification of Vibrational Energy Transfer in Driven Chiral Molecules},
author = {Jichen Feng and Ethan Abraham and Joseph E. Subotnik and Abraham Nitzan},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2509.00324},
year = {2025}
}