Polymorph Discrimination Using Low Wavenumber Raman Spectroscopy

Characterization of crystalline polymorphs and their quantitation has become an integral part of the preclinical drug development process. Raman spectroscopy is a powerful technique for the rapid identification of phases of pharmaceuticals. In the present work we demonstrate the use of low wavenumber Raman vibrational spectroscopy (including phonon measurement) for discrimination among polymorphs. A total of 10 polymorphic pharmaceuticals were employed to conduct a critical assessment. Raman scattering in the low-frequency region (10-400 cm(-1)), which includes crystal lattice vibrations, has been analyzed, and the results indicate lattice phonon Raman scattering can be used for rapid discrimination of polymorphic phases with additional discriminating power compared to conventional collection strategies. Moreover structural insight and conformational changes can be detected with this approach.