Raman Spectroscopy

Raman spectroscopy is used for the identification of unknowns and in material characterization studies such as crystallinity, strain and polymorphism and is applicable to a wide variety of organic and inorganic materials.

The relatively small spatial resolution provided by the visible laser (about 1 micrometer) allows us to identify contaminants and inclusions in situ in many cases. Applications of Raman spectroscopy which we have performed here include studies of carbon-based materials, contaminants in pharmaceutical products, identification of polymorphs in pharmaceutical actives, forensics, pigment identification, phase identification in minerals, crystallinity effects in polymers and identification of layers in laminated materials. Quantitative analyses have also been performed.

Learn how we use Raman mapping to tackle the problem of identifying morphologies of individual components within a multicomponent system like a tablet or powder.

Instrumentation

McCrone Associates has a Renishaw inVia Raman system coupled to a Leica microscope and equipped with 514 nm, 633 nm and 785 nm excitation lasers, edge filters with a cutoff at about 100 cm-1 , and mapping capabilities. The system is operated using Renishaw WiRE software that allows data collection, analysis and library searching. Our Raman is upgraded to a Qontar system, which includes LiveTrack™ real time focus tracking and an upgraded detector with Synchroscan™ capability to enable measurement of high resolution spectra with wider spectral range.