Molecular Physics

Spin Chemistry is a well-established field of research that covers a wide range of phenomena in which electron and nuclear spins affect the rates and yields of chemical processes. This special issue of Molecular Physics illustrates the state of the art in our research through a series of papers that were presented at the 15th International Symposium on Spin and Magnetic Field Effects in Chemistry and Related Phenomena. The symposium was held at Schluchsee in the southern Black Forest region of Germany from 17 to 22 September 2017.

Research into magnetic field effects on chemical reactions has been of interest for many decades. However, it wasn’t until the late 1960s and early 1970s that these effects were put on a solid experimental and theoretical footing. By the early 1990s there was clearly a need to establish a forum for their discussion. The origin of magnetic field effects in chemical processes lies in their spin selectivity, which also governs the phenomena of chemically induced dynamic electron and nuclear spin polarisation. Thus, it was natural to include these topics as well. The first International Symposium on Spin and Magnetic Field Effects in Chemistry and Related Phenomena took place in Tomakomai, Japan in 1991, followed by a second in Konstanz, Germany in 1992. The conference has since (with one exception) been held every two years at various locations in Europe, Asia and North America and has become known as the Spin Chemistry Meeting, or SCM for short. The 15th SCM in Schluchsee attracted over 100 scientific participants from 14 different countries, thus reflecting the continued interest in the field.

In the 25 years since the meeting in Tomakomai, the importance of spin chemistry has grown significantly, and with it the scope of the SCM. Today the symposium encompasses topics as diverse as avian navigation, photosynthesis, spintronics, photovoltaics and quantum computing, all of which involve spin-selective processes. The contributions to this special issue reflect this diversity.

The meeting in Schluchsee also formed an ideal platform to commemorate the life and importants scientific contributions of Klaus Schulten (1947–2016). Such was the impact of his work that he is widely considered one of the fathers of spin chemistry. Most notably, his seminal paper from 1978 [1], in which he laid out the physical principles by which biological organisms might detect the earth’s magnetic field, has given rise to a whole field of research.

We would like to thank the authors who have contributed to this issue for their hard work, scientific insight and patience. We are also grateful to the sponsors of the meeting (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), Bruker, the Taylor & Francis group, Westfalen, and the University of Freiburg) without whose generous support the conference would not have been possible. Together with our fellow ‘spin chemists’ we are now looking forward to exciting upcoming Spin Chemistry Meetings in St. Petersburg/Russia (in August 2019), and Evanston/USA (in 2021).