CHEMISTRY NOBEL PRIZE 2021
- Two scientists have been awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work on building molecules that are mirror images of one another.
- Their chemical toolkit has been used for discovering new drugs and making molecules that can capture light in solar cells.
- The technique, called asymmetric organocatalysis, has made it much easier to produce asymmetric molecules - chemicals that exist in two versions, where one is a mirror image of the other.
- Chemists often just want one of these mirror images - particularly when producing medicines - but it has been difficult to find efficient methods for doing this.
- The prestigious award comes with a gold medal and 10 million Swedish kronor (over $1.14 million).
- The prize money comes from a bequest left by the prize's creator, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, who died in 1895.