John F. Rabolt and D. Bruce Chase of the University of Delaware have been honored with the Materials Research Society Innovation in Materials Characterization Award for their “development of Fourier Transform Raman Spectroscopy and the demonstration of its utility for examining the chemical structure and properties of organic molecules and polymers in solids, thin films, and solutions.” They will be presented with the award at the 2013 Materials Research Society Spring Meeting in San Francisco. The award is endowed by Toh-Ming Lu and Gwo-Ching Wang.

John F. Rabolt

D. Bruce Chase

At the University of Delaware where Rabolt founded the Materials Science and Engineering Department, Chase and Rabolt collaborate on a number of projects related to the spectroscopic analysis of polymers, including recent work to develop methods for the rapid acquisition of spectra for such applications as inline analysis during manufacturing processes using focal plane arrays, giving rise to a new technique called planar array infrared spectroscopy (PA-IR). This approach is the basis for the University’s spin-off company, PAIR Technologies LLC. The PA-IR instrument enables ultrarapid (<100 µs) detailed detection and chemical analyses of polymers, chemical toxins, and biological pathogens.

Their work, however, began in separate locations with different research groups, simultaneously developing Fourier Transform Raman Spectroscopy (FT-Raman). Prior to their work, the practical use of Raman spectroscopy for examining polymers was severely limited due to overwhelming contributions from sample contaminants in creating a fluorescent background. Around 1985, Chase at the DuPont Central Research Laboratories in Delaware and Rabolt at the IBM Almaden Research Laboratory in California each developed approaches to overcome these limitations. Their work included the need to reduce the intensity of the lasers used in examining the samples to enhance signal-to-noise ratios, and the development of interferometric detectors to extract the weak Raman signals that were generated. Both laboratories demonstrated that FT-Raman could be used as a powerful compliment to the more well-established FT-IR methods. Their FT-Raman techniques revolutionized the detailed study of polymers and biopolymers in the presence of fluorescent impurities.

Shortly after publication of their seminal articles in 1986, the technique of FT-Raman was adapted by a number of commercial instrument companies including Bomem (now ABB), Bio-Rad (now Varian), Nicolet (now Thermo), Bruker, and Perkin-Elmer. Specific application areas include forensics, art and archeology, biological materials, disease diagnosis, and pharmaceuticals.

Rabolt became the founding chair of the department at Delaware where he is now active as a Karl W. and Renate Böer Named Professor. He received his PhD degree in chemical physics from Southern Illinois University. Chase, retired from DuPont, is now a Research Professor in the department. He received his PhD degree in physical chemistry from Princeton University.