Raman microscopy of inorganic materials – A stone is a stone! Is a stone? Harald Fitzek1,2, Martin Napetschnig3, Dejan Pramberger3, Stephan Schmutzler3, Wolfgang Lakata3, Felix Pertl3, Benedikt Gasplmayr3, Kerstin Absenger3, Markus Krainz3, Jasmin Spettel3, Dominik Wieland3, Matthias Prasch3, Ines Sommer3 and Arnela Blazevic1 1. Institute of Electron Microscopy and Nanoanalysis, Graz University of Technology, Steyrergasse 17, 8010 Graz, Austria 2. Graz Centre for Electron Microscopy, Steyrergasse 17, 8010 Graz, Austria 3. Graduate Student of Physics or Advanced Materials Science at the Graz University of Technology
Lungauer Kalkspitze
Introduction In the last year, students had the following task at our advanced lab exercise: “In our current laboratory exercise research project we are investigating the composition of common inorganic materials (such as rocks, dirt, crystals, and building materials) and the microscopic imaging of their components. A selection of samples from interested hobby geologist will be available, but students are also encouraged to bring their own samples (anything you are interested in from the soil in your back yard, to a weird looking rock you found while hiking). Our goal is to demonstrate that even in the limited time available during a lab exercise it is possible to produce a good quality analysis of a complex real world sample.”
Brick
Fig. 1: Raman Mapping of a red brick; topleft: light microscope image; bottom-left: macro-image and legend; left: Raman-Map
top-left: light microscope image; bottom-left: macroimage and legend; top-right: Raman-Map; bottom-right: excerpt of the Raman-Map containing an interesting Fe-oxide particle
µm
Fig. 3: Raman Mapping of a rock collected form the Lungauer Kalkspitze;
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Identifying gem stones
Roof tile
2: Epidote
2: Diopside
2: Albite
1&6: Quartz
3: Sodalite Fig. 2: Raman Mapping of a roof tile; top-right: light microscope image; bottomright: macro-image and legend; left: Raman-Map
Acknowledgements The authors are deeply grateful to the Graz Centre for Electron microscopy (ZFE) and the Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) for financial support and to all the students who gave their best.
4&5: Microcline
Contact 4: Red Ochre
harald.fitzek@felmi-zfe.at www.felmi-zfe.at
Fig. 4: A variety of gem stones was analyzed without sample preparation; The image above shows the gem stones and the spectra/components are enumerated accordingly