Raman spectra of translational lattice vibrations in polar ice

We measured the Raman spectra of Mizuho and Nansen ice recovered from Antarctica, and Dye-3 ice recovered from Greenland, to observe the translational lattice vibrations in polar ice. Since we investigated the effect of the aging on the ice and the ice temperature on the spectra, we chose to study the ice from three different sites. The ages of the ice Ih range from 4.6 to 100 kyr. The ice temperatures at the depth it was located range from 231 to 260 K. The results were compared with the measurements taken of the Vostok ice by Fukazawa et al. We found that the relative intensity of the peak at 300 cm(-1) increased as the temperature at which the ice was kept for a long period increased from 214 to 237 K. Since this peak is assigned to a translational lattice vibration traveling along the hydrogen-bonding network, we conclude that the structure of the network in the polar ice varies with time at a very slow rate to attain an equilibrium state that has never been found on the laboratory time scale.