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JenerDerBleibt
2 years ago

A molecule is then optically active when it is chiral. Just because a molecule has chirality centers, that’s nothing. Thus, there are also compounds (meso-tartaric acid, for example) which have chiral centers, but nevertheless are achiral. The prerequisite for chirality is the absence of a rotating mirror axis (i.e. it is clear that one molecule cannot be converted into its mirror image by rotation).

There are also other causes: crystals which have asymmetry in the crystal structure are optically active, for example. Like liquid crystals.

JenerDerBleibt
2 years ago
Reply to  chemieistgut

What do you mean?

Chiral doesn’t mean a rotating mirror axis. This is often the case when the molecule has chiral centers. But as my example shows above, it doesn’t always have to be.