Application of Raman spectroscopy in probing biomolecular interactions

Abstract

Historically, light scattering by small particles and related discussions can be traced back to the era of Leonardo da Vinci. He correctly predicted that the blue color of the sky was due to light scattered o macroparticles in the atmosphere consisting of dust, water droplets or ice crystals. Subsequently, scattering of light from suspensions of transparent uids was studied by Leroy Tyndall. In 1873 Maxwell postulated that the scattered radiation carries information about the molecule's properties and the molecule itself acts as the scattering center. Shortly later, Lord Rayleigh theoretically analyzed the scattering of light from suspended particles [1]. In 1923, the existence of inelastic or frequency modi ed light scattering was reported by Smekal through his theoretical work [2]. The experimental veri cation of this phenomenon was given by C. V. Raman in 1928. For this discovery he was awarded the Nobel prize. This phenomenon was also independently observed and proven by Landsberg and Mendelstam [3; 4]. This shift of frequency of scattered light from molecules is known as Raman e ect [5].