Narrow-line waveguide terahertz time-domain spectroscopy of aspirin and aspirin precursors

Low frequency vibrational modes of pharmaceutical molecules are dependent on the molecule as a whole and can be used for identification purposes. However, conventional Fourier transform far-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) often result in broad, overlapping features that are difficult to distinguish. The technique of waveguide THz-TDS has been recently developed, resulting in sharper spectral features. Waveguide THz-TDS consists of forming an ordered polycrystalline film on a metal plate and incorporating that plate in a parallel-plate waveguide, where the film is probed by THz radiation. The planar order of the film on the metal surface strongly reduces the inhomogeneous broadening, while cooling the waveguide to 77 K reduces the homogeneous broadening. This combination results in sharper absorption lines associated with the vibrational modes of the molecule. Here, this technique has been demonstrated with aspirin and its precursors, benzoic acid and salicylic acid, as well as the salicylic acid isomers 3- and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid. Linewidths as narrow as 20 GHz have been observed, rivaling single crystal measurements.