Monitoring and controlling solid form of APIs crystallized from supramolecular gels by means of NLO techniques

In this project, we will apply harmonic light scattering (HLS) and microscopy as an accessible alternative optical technique to measure the supramolecular gel mediated crystallization of amino acids. For these active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), polarized SHG microscopy has been used to discriminate their polymorphic forms and chirality, to study their growth kinetics. However, the direct detection of nucleation has hitherto stayed out of reach, and many questions regarding their growth mechanism remain. For instance the way the mimetic structures affect the form of polymorphs and the interaction between the chiral gel and enantiomers. HLS is ideally suited to address these open questions of supramolecular gel mediated crystallization. We will use the measurement platform to perform the nucleation and growth mechanism with the ultimate aim of developing rational strategies for directing crystallization of amino acids toward crystals with desired solid forms, which will further uncover inherent principle for supramolecular gel mediated crystallization.