AFM-Raman Systems and Raman Spectroscopy has become very popular in a range of different scientific fields within the past 10 years due to advances which have meant that Raman spectroscopy has never been simpler to perform. Advances both in testing times and portability have meant that Raman spectroscopy is now the chief choice of very many scientists in the field of forensics, but there are other industries which have embraced Raman spectroscopy technology throughout their investigative procedures.
What sort of materials is Raman spectroscopy used on?
The list of applications is indeed broad, due to the fact that Raman spectroscopy can be used to analyse almost everything. Raman spectroscopy is suitable for the analysis of solids, powders, liquids, gels, slurries and gases, and everything in-between. Furthermore, Raman spectroscopy shows promising spectra on inorganic materials such as plastics and polymers as well as organic ones, and can even be used on biological materials such as blood and human tissue, among others.
Raman spectroscopy can be used on pure chemicals, mixtures and solutions in addition, which means that the viability of Raman based spectroscopy is even more valuable.
The only limitation with Raman spectroscopy is that it cannot be used on metals or any forms of alloy, due to the fact that atoms in pure metals do not vibrate and therefore do not give appropriate polarization to influence light wavelength. Therefore, the method of measuring variations in light which are normally required to perform Raman spectroscopy is quite literally impossible.
Which Applications are there for Raman Spectroscopy?
There are a number of tasks which are routinely done today with the aid of Raman spectroscopy. The fields of art and archelogy use Raman Spectroscopy routinely in order to characterise pigments, ceramics and gemstones which are often pieces of artworks or major archaeological finds. Needless to say, the non-destructive nature of Raman spectroscopy as well as the level of detail which can be ascertained of an object is quite simply invaluable.
Measuring the age of an artefact is possible with Raman Spectroscopy. Due to literature and human accounts of dates of infrastructure completion, there is a rough guideline in existence of how certain materials should look. A reference to a period will be ascertained before an artefact is tested for similar characteristics. Of course, this is performed on an artefact which is the same material as the reference.
Often, proper identification and verification that a piece is indeed an original product is performed using this technique. If a fake is brought into play, as it is being tested, compounds will be identified which quite simply weren’t in existence at that particular point.
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