Vortex Mössbauer Effect as Nanoscale Probe of Chiral Structures

Abstract Chirality, a common phenomenon in nature, appears in structures ranging from galaxies and condensed matter to atomic nuclei. There is a persistent demand for new, high-precision methods to detect chiral structures, particularly at the microscale. Here, we propose a novel method, vortex Mössbauer spectroscopy, for probing chiral structures. By leveraging the orbital angular momentum carried by vortex beams, this approach achieves high precision in detecting chiral structures at scales ranging from nanometers to hundreds of nanometers. Our simulation shows the ratio of characteristic lines in the Mössbauer spectra of 57 Fe under vortex beams exhibits differences of up to four orders of magnitude for atomic structures with different arrangements. Additionally, simulations reveal the response of 229m Th chiral structures to vortex beams with opposite angular momenta differs by approximately 49-fold. These significant spectral variations indicate that this new vortex Mössbauer probe holds great potential for investigating the microscopic chiral structures and interactions of matter.