Intrinsically Chiral Plasmonic Hybrid Nanomaterials with Tailored Chiroptical Activities

Chiral plasmonic hybrid nanomaterials with an intrinsically chiral structure have emerged as a rapidly expanding class of functional systems due to their unique ability to manipulate the polarization state of light through strong light-matter interactions. Unlike molecular chirality, plasmonic chirality in nanoscale architectures originates from collective electron oscillations that interact strongly with circularly polarized electromagnetic fields, enabling highly tunable and amplified chiroptical responses. These characteristics have unlocked unprecedented opportunities in diverse applications, including sensing, catalysis, and photonics. The integration of other functional components (such as excitons, dielectrics, metals, polymers, etc.) with chiral plasmonic nanostructures provides a powerful pathway to combine multiple physical functionalities, offering enhanced structural diversity and tunable chiroptical properties beyond those of single-component systems. In this spotlight, we focus on the emerging intrinsically chiral hybrid plasmonic nanomaterials with tailored chiroptical activities. The chiral hybrid plasmonic nanomaterials will be categorized into four different subsections depending on the different functional components that were integrated: (1) catalytically active chiral plasmon nanomaterials; (2) chiral plasmon–dielectric hybrid nanomaterials; (3) chiral plexcitonic systems with tunable plasmon–exciton coupling; (4) chiral plasmon–polymer hybrid nanomaterials for active chiroptics. These advances provide a robust foundation for the creation of multifunctional chiral nanomaterials with enhanced performance and open opportunities for applications in sensing, photonics, and beyond.