Optical Isomer

Real World Example

Have you ever tried putting on a pair of gloves only to realize that you've mistakenly tried to fit your left hand into the right glove? This is similar to optical isomers, which are like left and right gloves: they have the same shape and structure, but are mirror images that cannot be superimposed on one another. Just as you can't wear a left glove on your right hand comfortably, these isomers, despite having the same molecular formula, cannot be aligned exactly with each other, which affects how they interact in chemical reactions.