Comment on "spin-orbit interaction and spin selectivity for tunneling electron transfer in DNA"

The observation of chiral-induced spin selectivity (CISS) in biological molecules still awaits a full theoretical explanation. In a recent Rapid Communication, Varela et al. [Phys. Rev. B 101, 241410(R) (2020)2469-995010.1103/PhysRevB.101.241410] presented a model for electron transport in biological molecules by tunneling in the presence of spin-orbit interactions. They then claimed that their model produces a strong spin asymmetry due to the intrinsic atomic spin-orbit strength. As their Hamiltonian is time-reversal symmetric, this result contradicts a theorem by Bardarson [J. Phys. A: Math. Theor. 41, 405203 (2008)1751-811310.1088/1751-8113/41/40/405203], which states that such a Hamiltonian cannot generate a spin asymmetry for tunneling between two terminals (in which there are only a spin-up and a spin-down channel). Here we solve the model proposed by Varela et al. and show that it does not yield any spin asymmetry, and therefore cannot explain the observed CISS effect.