Question

What are chiral carbons \[?\]

Answer 1

Hint: First we know that chiral molecules are the molecules which are non superimposable on their mirror images and these properties are known as chirality. Chiral carbon atoms are also referred to as stereogenic carbons or asymmetrical carbon atoms.

Complete answer:
The chiral carbon atoms are carbon atoms that are attached to four different atoms or groups of atoms losses all symmetry, that are placed at the corners of a tetrahedron. The configuration of such a tetrahedral unit is chiral. The structure may exist in either a right-handed configuration or a left-handed configuration. This type of configurational stereoisomers is termed enantiomorphism.
Example: consider a lactic acid

Here the carbon which is indicated by \[*\] The sign is chiral carbon.
The four groups of atoms attached to the carbon atom can be arranged in space in two different ways that are like mirror images of each other.

Note:
The Bel-van't Hoff rule states that the number of stereoisomers of an organic compound is \[{2^n}\], where \[n\] is the number of chiral carbon atoms (unless there is an internal plane of symmetry). Hence if \[n\] is the number of chiral carbon atoms then the maximum number of isomers is \[{2^n}\].