Two-dimensional chirality at liquid–solid interfaces

Abstract

This tutorial review highlights the formation of chiral molecular patterns at the liquid–solid interface, revealed at the submolecular level with scanning tunnelling microscopy. It is shown that chiral patterns can be formed by both chiral and achiral molecules. The assembly of mixtures of mirror-image-like molecules gets special attention. Finally, non-standard methods to induce surface chirality in achiral systems are discussed. © 2009 The Royal Society of Chemistry.