  The transverse component of the spin angular momentum of evanescent waves
gives rise to lateral optical forces on chiral particles, which have the
unusual property of acting in a direction in which there is neither a field
gradient nor wave propagation. As their direction and strength depends on the
chiral polarizability of the particle, they act as chirality-sorting and may
offer a mechanism for passive chirality spectroscopy. The absolute strength of
the forces also substantially exceeds that of other recently predicted sideways
optical forces, such that they may more readily offer an experimental
confirmation of the phenomenon.
