Dendritic crystal growth, differential circular scattering, and the origin of biomolecular homochirality.

Phthalic acid rapidly crystallizing in thin aqueous films is deposited radially and rhythmically as dendritic banded spherulites that have heterochiral meso-textures in hemi-circles. The chiral fields differentially scatter left and right circularly polarized light. A scenario for chiral amplification and the origin of biomolecular homochirality is thus proposed that combines the influences of crystals and light. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.